The Ranking Member on Parliament’s Mines and Energy Committee, John Abdulai Jinapor has predicted doom for the economy should the incumbent government fail to address the recent energy challenges.
According to him, the “struggling” state of the economy owing to Covid-19 indicates that the Akufo-Addo government cannot afford to be hit by another crisis.
“The impact of yet another energy crisis can have dire consequences on the already struggling debt ridden, Covid-19 economy under President Akufo-Addo,” he said.
Addressing the press Wednesday, on the recent erratic and unreliable power experienced in major parts of the country, Mr Jinapor revealed that despite several assurances from Energy Minister, Matthew Opoku Prempeh to tackle the issue, matters on the ground prove otherwise.
The “obnoxious double-track system which has been exported to the power sector” he says is evidence of government’s inability to resolve the challenge.
He, therefore, presented a ten-point recommendation drafted by the Minority to help the incumbent administration address the energy sector challenges.
He pointed government’s interference in the energy sector management as a challenge, hence advised government to refrain from engaging in political appointments especially within middle management levels when vacancies are declared.
Also, the former Deputy Energy Minister entreated government to inject the needed capital into the power sector and cut down on wasteful expenditure.
Still on financing, he added: “The Ministry of Energy must conduct a comprehensive reconciliation of the total indebtedness of all players including government and its SOEs including (GNPC, GNGC, VRA, GRIDCo, CENIT, ECG, NEDCo) in a transparent manner.
“The Ministry of Finance must take steps to utilize the $1 billion sovereign bond borrowed in 2020 to address the financial challenges of the Energy sector.
“Government must ensure that Energy sector SOEs Publish details of their financial statements including details and ageing of their indebtedness as well as debts owed to them on time.”
