The Politics Of Electricity Tariffs

Electricity and water tariffs are threatening to become major issues in the run up to the 2016 elections on November 7. With utility tariffs going through the roof, the economic noose, which has threatened for sometime, is now tightening around the necks of industry players and ordinary Ghanaians.  

For some time now, leading figures in government and party apparatchiks propping up the occupant of Government House have labeled Ghanaians as cry babies who raise the red flag unnecessarily, and that rising tariffs were the necessary tools to make the generation of electricity competitive and keep industry running, as well as lighting up individual homes and our streets.

With the electoral fortunes appearing to swing away from the ruling party, crocodile tears are flowing from party offices to the House of Parliament. On Friday, Majority Chief Whip Mohammed Mubarak Muntaka invited the Government of President John Dramani Mahama to intervene urgently, to save the governing party from losing popularity with the Ghanaian voter.

In an urgent statement on the floor of the House, Mr. Muntaka is reported to have accused the Electricity Company of Ghana of doing the bidding of the opposition New Patriotic Party, by intentionally 'over-billing' poor customers, and thereby, causing disaffection for the government.

Read the lips of the Majority Chief Whip: “Mr. Speaker, my information reveals that there are errors in the billing of the newly-installed pre-paid meters, administrative lapses due to poor supervision of technical officers by their superiors, deliberate efforts by some unscrupulous ECG officials to take advantage of the new arrangements for personal gains, and over-estimation of bills by consumers on post-paid meters.”

Following Mr. Muntaka's statement, Mr. John Jinapor, Deputy Minister in charge of Power, has been summoned by Parliament to appear on the floor of the House to answer questions on concrete steps being taken by the Ministry to address what the House referred to as “crisis in electricity billing.”

As if on cue, the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission immediately ordered the ECG to suspend the new billing system. The commission explained that its order followed complaints lodged by consumers regarding the issue of 'over-billing.' The Chronicle is happy that, at long last, it has now dawned on those who matter in this society, that electricity consumers were being ripped off, and are taking measures to stop the wanton abuse of the billing process to rip Ghanaians off.

While the realisation is too little too late, this paper takes consolation in the fact that some sort of action is being taken at last to stop the rot and save many industries from collapsing. It is not long ago when officialdom responded to concerns raised by the killer tariffs, which is killing industries and making others think of re-locating from this country, by ridiculing the claim, and asking those raising the concerns to name companies seeking to relocate as a result of the killer electricity and water tariffs.

We dare state that the sudden change in attitude is not influenced by the genuine concern for the ordinary Ghanaian. The Chronicle does not shy from tracing the new awareness to the sudden realisation that the tariff issue could affect the vote. Throughout the country, potential voters are raising the red flag over the killer tariffs, and that is what is raising concern.

It is interesting to learn that the ruling party is thinking more about their card-bearing members than the interest of society generally.  The NDC apparatchiks are reportedly looking more at the influence the billing system would have on their following.

At the time of going to press, unconfirmed reports indicated that the ruling National Democratic Congress had asked card-bearing members to bring electricity receipts from January to May to their various party offices for refund. If what The Chronicle is learning represents the truth, then we are entering a new realm of politicking.

It would mean that the ruling party cares more about the vote than the collapse of industries, as a result of the huge burden the killer tariffs are having on the balance sheet. It will also throw more light on the political reality, which obviously, influenced Mr. Muntaka's statement on the floor of the House, as well as the cue from the PURC to order the suspension of the new billing process.  In all this, one common trend is emerging. The PURC is emerging as an apron-string of the government in power, and it does not portent any good for the development of this society!