The Minority Caucus of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) in Parliament has taken on President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo over his comments against former President John Mahama on ‘’dumsor’’.
President Akufo-Addo on Tuesday when speaking at the commissioning of the Accra Central Bulk Supply Point, said Ghanaians under his stewardship, would not experience the dark days of the power crisis.
According to the President, “I want to reassure all of you that my government will continue to work to always keep the lights on despite the global dynamics of the energy pricing because the alternative is not an option because we are not going back to dumsor and we leave that to President Mahama’’.
‘’I’m convinced and confident that our nation is on the right path despite our challenges. And with God on our side, I have the firm belief that we will succeed in this enterprise,” President Akufo-Addo said.
The Accra Central BSP was constructed by the Millennium Development Authority and is a major component of the Ghana Power Compact. The project is aimed at enhancing the reliability and stability of electricity supply to the central business district of Accra and its surrounding areas.
The project involved the construction of a new 161kV substation, the installation of new power transformers, and the upgrading of existing distribution networks.
The Accra Central BSP is expected to improve the quality of electricity supply to over 600,000 customers in the region.
However, the NDC Minority Ranking Member on Mines and Energy Committee, John Abdulai Jinapor in a statement said the Minority has noted with serious concern the decision by President Akufo-Addo to attack the person of former President Mahama during the commissioning of the 161kv Bulk Supply Point at Accra Central, which President Mahama initiated.
According to him, ‘’For the record, the Mahama-led government in 2014 requested for grant aid from Japan to construct the 161kv Bulk Supply Point to be located in the Central Business District of Accra, to adequately and reliably meet the high electricity demand in the area, which was growing at a rate higher than the system average of 10% per annum’’.
He lamented that ‘’We wish to emphasize that all the necessary, regulatory, financial and technical approvals were secured under President Mahama, with actual construction works commencing in 2016 before he handed over power to the current administration. This can be verified from the 2017 and 2018 GRIDCo Annual Reports as well as the “2015 Preparatory Survey Report on The Project for Power Supply To Accra Central In The Republic Of Ghana” published on the JICA website’’.
He claimed that ‘’It is therefore surprising that rather than commending his predecessor for initiating the New Bulk Supply Point, described as a gamechanger by the current GRIDCo Board Chair), President Akufo-Addo rather chose the occasion to make a baseless, inaccurate and unfounded allegation against former President Mahama’’.
He added that ‘’If President Akufo-Addo truly wants to know who ended dumsor, he may want to consult his own Vice-President, Dr. Mahamoud Bawumiah who is on record to have stated that Mahama ended dumsor ‘’.
‘’If President Akufo-Addo cannot recognise the enormous contribution of President Mahama in the energy sector, the least he could do was to refrain from such unwarranted attacks, particularly at a programme to commission a project which is the brainchild of President Mahama, as the saying goes “you do not bite the hand that fed you”.
‘’The Minority wishes to caution in the strongest terms possible that it will no longer tolerate such unwarranted and pedestrian attacks on President Mahama by this non-performing government in a desperate attempt to tarnish his image’’ the statement added.
‘’It is an incontrovertible fact that President John Mahama laid a solid foundation in the Power Sector, with a clear vision of exporting Power as evidenced by the completion of the 330kv Kumasi – Bolgatanga Transmission Project, which has enabled Ghana to export power to neighboring Burkina-Faso’’.
‘’On the contrary, the Akufo-Addo/Bawumia-led government, having added no value to the sector, will go down in history as the worst Government as far as the Power sub-sector is concerned’’ the Minority claimed.
-BY Daniel Bampoe