ECG Privatization Not Solution To Dumsor-TUC

The Trade Union Congress (TUC) has kicked against any attempt by government to privatize the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG).

According to TUC, privatizing ECG would not help end the power crisis that is rapidly crippling the country's economy.

Government is currently looking for a transaction advisor and considering two options- partial privatization or concession in transforming ECG.

Government is likely to opt for partial privatization since a concession contract can take two years or more to complete.

However, Kofi Asamoah, Secretary General of the TUC, who was speaking at the 2015 May Day parade in Accra, said privatization of ECG should not be seen as part of the solution to the energy crisis.

'Public assets must remain public. Privatization only serves the interest of profit-hungry foreign investors. It will not address our energy crisis,' he said.

According to him, if all power users, including government agencies and institutions, would pay their bills on time ECG would not need to be privatized.

Mr. Asamoah said companies that are willing to produce and distribute power in Ghana should be allowed to do so.

Opposes IMF-Bailout
The TUC boss expressed displeasure about government's decision to go for the International Monitory Fund (IMF) bailout.

'Organized Labour is opposed to the IMF bailout and its conditionalities. Our position to the IMF stems from the fact that in the last 30 years our economic and social policies have been based on IMF policies.

'This has been so even during periods we are not implementing IMF programmes, but the economy is still in bad shape,' he said.

By Cephas Larbi
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