Member of Parliament for South Dayi, Rockson-Nelson Dafeamekpor, has lamented the state of Ghana’s energy sector, insisting that the ruling government has mismanaged the sector.
According to him, the current threat by the Independent Power Producers (IPPs) further proves the bad state of the energy sector in the country. He revealed that government, as a matter of fact, cannot shift blames on problems it has created for the nation.
“The incessant complain by government that we signed an expensive IPPs is neither here nor there. They have signed about three more in addition to what they came to meet and they are signing more… So why complain about those that you came to meet? They claim that they have extended rural electrification…
“If you claim you’re establishing One District One Factory, you’ll need power to power them. So, they should get their narratives right. Where we are, the government has mismanaged the energy sector and running us into a crisis if we are not careful.”
Rockson-Nelson Dafeamekpor
Mr Dafeamekpor stated that due to mismanagement of the energy sector by government, he is not surprised that the IPPs are demanding “blood”. He emphasized that the demands of the IPPs are justified due to their “huge operational cost” and payments which must be made.
“If you look at the nature of their operations, their operations are very expensive. So, they need these monies to be able to offset those debts…”
Rockson-Nelson Dafeamekpor
Furthermore, Mr Dafeamekpor highlighted that Ghana shouldn’t have been in this current predicament. He revealed that the economy government inherited in 2017 ought not to be experiencing such hardship.
“This should have been an economy that would have doubled by now if we had kept that trajectory. Don’t talk of COVID because COVID brought you a windfall… COVID brought you money you wouldn’t have ordinarily gotten. So, how did you expend it?”
Rockson-Nelson Dafeamekpor
Resolving energy sector crisis
Commenting on how to resolve the current challenge the country is bedeviled with to avert power crisis, the South Dayi legislator called for efficient management of the sector, and not politicizing it.
“Be candid, forthright and [have] good policies, that is what will take us out… Every year when we do the budgetary considerations, the budgets that institutions bring includes payment of electricity bills for which we approve. So, I don’t know why year in year out we approve budgets for these institutions to pay their bills and yet it doesn’t get paid.”
Rockson-Nelson Dafeamekpor
On his part, Member of Parliament for Anyaa-Sowutuom, Dr Dickson Adomako Kissi, commended the Managing Director of the Electricity Company of Ghana, Samuel Dubik Masubir Mahama, for being “very proactive” with the nationwide revenue mobilization.
He however indicated that the energy industry is a “really heavy one” and that although the current monies recouped may not suffice, progress has been made. With this, he expressed confidence that through the leadership of the finance ministry institutions still owing will pay up to defray debt incurred.
“If you look at the last 12 weeks when he went after institutions that owed ECG and how he was able to shore up a lot of monies, though not substantial compared to what ECG is required to pay, I think he is on a very good cause and I really think that this will even encourage him to do more and make sure that institutions in this country that owe ECG will make the necessary payment and allow for them to remit to these IPPs.”
Dr Dickson Adomako Kissi
Meanwhile, there is an impending power crisis as the Chamber of Independent Power Producers (IPPs) has directed its members to cut supply to the national grid from July 1. However, the directive not to declare their available power capacity to the system operator is to last till July 8.
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