Political interference affecting the work of ECG, GRIDCo, VRA – Jantuah

Energy Expert Kwame Jantuah believes that the main problem affecting the effective delivery of work by the Ghana Grid Company Limited, (GRIDCo), the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG), and the Volta River Authority (VRA), is political interference.

He stated the political appointees within these institutions must make way for technical persons to function and deliver.

Mr Kwame Jantuah was reacting to the call by the Asantehene Otumfuo Osei Tutu II to diversify GRIDCo, ECG, and the VRA.

The Asantehene, while justifying his call said that privatizing these institutions will make these institutions function as expected of them.

Speaking during the commissioning of a 430-kilometre natural gas pipeline by Genser Energy, in Kumasi on Wednesday, April 17, he said “It’s about time that the government realizes that it’s not going to work for the government to be involved in setting up companies without involving the private sector, it doesn’t work.

The government should confront policies and involve the private sector and you can attract more investors into the country which will create more employment.

“VRA and others are all government establishments, let’s give it out and diversify them into the private sector and get more money there and get the right people to do it.

Electricity Company is in a situation where we don’t know, but that also must be diversified and given to the private sector.

“Why are we still holding on when we don’t have the money?

We’re hanging onto industries we cannot maintain and run.”

He added “It’s about time we face reality and decide on what government should be doing and what the private sector should be doing.

This is a testimony of the private sector, and they were able to attract investors.”

Reacting to this on the Ghana Tonight show on TV3 on Wednesday, April 17, Mr Jantuah said “Does the private sector have the wherewithal to do this?

The internationals that come to Ghana to work, do they not change the money into their currencies and take it away,?

Isn’t it our local forex that they change the money away?

“We have to be sure that we have streamlined our laws, you need technical people to run technical institutions so that when the government changes those technical people are still there this issue about the president nominating everybody, that is where you get the politics in there.