Playing ‘cheap politics’ with ECG dangerous – Nduom

Former Minister of Energy, Dr. Papa Kwesi Nduom has cautioned the Mahama-led National Democratic Congress to stop blaming others for the current problems in the power sector in relation to high electricity tariffs.

According to Dr. Nduom blaming others for such issue is ‘cheap’ and ‘dangerous.’

“This administration must stop playing politics with the power crisis.  We should ask when government will pay what it owes to ECG to give it breathing room to apply good management methods and systems.  And the Power Ministry must closely monitor and supervise this sector very well.  No cheap, political blame games here,” he added.

Dr. Nduom made the comment in relation to comments made by the Majority Chief Whip, Muntaka Mubarak , who blamed the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) for sabotaging government by charging high tariffs.

Mr. Muntaka asked Parliament to institute a probe into the recent billing irregularities by the ECG since in his view the company appears to be sabotaging efforts by President John Mahama to alleviate the pressure brought on by the increased utility tariffs.

According to him, reports suggested that the cost of consumption had more than doubled in some cases and this, in his view, has imposed untold hardship on “virtually all Ghanaians.”

“The overall effect of this is that, the efforts of his Excellency John Dramani Mahama to permanently solve the long-standing power crisis are being hampered,” Mr. Mubarak intimated.

But in his latest epistle, Dr. Nduom who is also the founder of the Progressive Peoples Party (PPP) said if government had adhered to his counsel, such issues in the power sector would have been resolved by now.

“Did the Majority Chief Whip Mohammed Muntaka Mubarak really accuse ECG of undermining President John Mahama's fight against DUMSOR? So what do these people take Ghanaians for?  Was it not President Mahama who stood in Parliament in front of the Majority Chief Whip and promised that he would fix the DUMSOR problem?  And did the same President Mahama not go back to Parliament in the presence of this same Majority Chief Whip and declare victory against dumsor?  Is DUMSOR not supposed to be '…a thing of the past?'”

He further questioned that “was this same Majority Chief Whip not one of the MPs who jubilated when the President declared that the power generation problem was over?”

Below is the full statement from Dr. Nduom:
Did the Majority Chief Whip Mohammed Muntaka Mubarak really accuse ECG of undermining President John Mahama's fight against DUMSOR?

So what do these people take Ghanaians for?  Was it not President Mahama who stood in Parliament in front of the Majority Chief Whip and promised that he would fix the DUMSOR problem?  And did the same President Mahama not go back to Parliament in the presence of this same Majority Chief Whip and declare victory against dumsor?  Is DUMSOR not supposed to be “…a thing of the past”?

I have counselled the current administration not to be in a hurry to declare victory over dumsor.  I have asked President Mahama and his people to be patient enough to understand the full scope of the power crisis – from generation to transmission to distribution to billing and collection of power supplied.  Many of them doubted my sincerity in giving this advise.  Was this same Majority Chief Whip not one of the MPs who jubilated when the President declared that the power generation problem was over?  He and others did not listen when some of us cautioned them and asked them not to consider generation to be 100% of the power problem.

They wanted a political solution so they got one, an expensive generation solution and now they realize there is a billing and collection problem.  Instead of sitting down to understand this problem, this MP is playing a dangerous blame game with the ECG.

When the business people complained about the doubling and tripling of power bills, these politicians cried foul and were not sympathetic.  So when did this MP realize that there are some ECG power distribution, billing and collection problems to solve?  Is it because we are in an election year he now realizes that “… in several cases, the cost of consumption has more than doubled and this has imposed undue hardship on virtually all Ghanaians, especially on the ordinary masses”.  What about the businesses that pay tax and employ the ordinary masses?

This administration must stop playing politics with the power crisis.  We should ask when government will pay what it owes to ECG to give it breathing room to apply good management methods and systems.  And the Power Ministry must closely monitor and supervise this sector very well.  No cheap, political blame games here.

Dr. Papa Kwesi Nduom
–
By: Godwin A. Allotey/citifmonline.com/Ghana
Follow @AlloteyGodwin