As many have blamed the country’s unending energy crisis on low water levels in the Akosombo Dam, low or inconsistent supply of gas from the West Africa Gas Pipe line, unavailability of crude and other technical excuses, PURC has preferred to blame Ghana’s famous dumsor on the 2013 tariff reduction.
It would be recalled that in 2013, the Public Utilities and Regulatory Commission announced a 78.9 percent tariff hike for electricity with the explanation that the increment was meant to help power producers and the Electricity Company of Ghana to generate funds to purchase enough crude for the country’s thermals should there be a shortfall in the production from the hydrodam.
“But government after heeding the the pressure that was mounted on it by pressure groups and the public reduced the tariff by 25 percent, nearly halve of what we proposed”, Nana Jantua stressed.
She said, despite several warnings to government about the consequence of an attempt to reduce the tariff, government went ahead to reduce it, hence plunging the whole country into the current load shedding that has some what become a normality and a part of the every day life of Ghanaians.
The PURC recently announce a tariff hike of 59.2% for water and 67.2% for electricity just as people are hesitantly preparing for the Christmas season due to what many have described as a hard economy.
following the announcement of hikes, the Christian Council of Ghana, TUC, pressure groups and the public have been on the PURC to reduce the tariffs or suspend its implementation entirely until the power crisis is solved.
The Christian Council in a statement said the decision by the PURC, especially in these very difficult economic times where businesses are struggling to thrive, coupled with the current high cost of living and erratic supply of water and electricity is very insensitive, unfortunate for an upward review of utility tariffs and must quickly be reversed.
But a conversation of StarrFm’s morning show saw the the Public Relations Director of PURC Nana Yaa Jantua pointing accusing fingers on the 2013 near halve tariff reduction as the reason why the country has been plunged into the 24 hour darkness and 12 hour light load shedding management that has seriously crippled many businesses, leading tho thousands of job cuts with the most affected being the private sector.
“We noticed that if we were not careful this country would be plunged into massive load shedding, we said it…because in that tariff we made an account for crude oil that can be bought for the plants in case our prediction comes true.
“That tariff was almost halved into two and we were desperate because we said if this thing is touched there would be massive load shedding and nobody listened. We go for meetings and everybody is desperate because we knew what would happen”.
Ghana has been experiencing power crisis that has led to massive load shedding exercise for both domestic and industrial users.
What many people are lamenting about the recent utility tariff hike is linked to the fact that both domestic and industrial consumers of electricity has for the past four years been made to pay higher tariffs periodically with the common excuse from the PURC every time they announce new tariffs is that the upward review will help utility providers to deliver quality and consistent service, a promise they keep failing to achieve.
Source: NewsGhana.com.gh
