Ghana’s historical challenge with stable electricity supply was "comprehensively resolved by President John Mahama in December 2015", Minority Leader Cassiel Ato Forson has told parliament.
"Unfortunately, today, dumsor is back under this Akufo-Addo/Bawumia government, "he complained on the floor on Monday, 11 March 2024, as he wrapped up his side's argument during a debate of the president's State of the Nation Address.
Dr Forson said, "Households and businesses are experiencing sustained power outages," while state power transmitter GRIDCo "has been shedding more than 450 megawatts of power each day".
"Yet, the government is not even bold enough to make an admission of the seriousness of the challenges of the power sector, let alone publish a timetable to help Ghanaians plan their lives, "he said.
"Who does not know that dumsor is back?" he wondered.
He blamed the situation on the Akufo-Addo government's failure to honour its financial obligations to independent power producers.
"Having inherited almost 5,000 megawatts of generation capacity, the $1 billion Atuabo Gas
processing plant, the ENI/Sankofa gas field, the Energy Sector Levies Act, this Akufo-Addo/Bawumia NPP government owes more than $1.5 billion to independent Power Producers (IPPs)", Dr Forson noted.
"Mr Speaker, the huge, dedicated inflows from the Energy Sector Levies Act (ESLA), which
President John Mahama left behind to pay down all the legacy debts in the energy sector, which have been wasted by this government", Dr Forson argued.
The Akufo-Addo/Bawumia government, he added, has "resorted to a fire-fighting strategy, deliberately kicking the can down the road for the next NDC government to inherit its huge indebtedness to the IPPs".
"The reality, Mr Speaker, is that this crippling indebtedness and the mess in the power sector, created by the Akufo Addo/Bawumia government, remains the biggest threat to the Ghanaian economy", he mentioned.
Dr Forson, thus, ridiculed President Akufo-Addo’s claim that his government is on course to achieving universal access to electricity, as "wishful thinking."
"This Akufo-Addo/Bawumia NPP government has barely managed to expand electricity access by 5.6% in seven years, meaning an average of 0.8% per year. To achieve universal access, they must expand electricity by about 11.5%. This is just not possible in nine months", he noted.
He said the NDC government inherited a country with electricity coverage of 60.5% in 2009 but in eight years, the Mills/Mahama/NDC administration increased access to electricity to 83.24%.
"The NDC expanded electricity access by a significant 22.74%, a record that remains unmatched, while the NPP has added a paltry 5.6% so far."
ECG warns of more dumsor: 'Your lights may go off between 7 & 11 pm due to blown fuses, broken conductors'
Meanwhile, the Electricity Company of Ghana has warned the public to expect more power outages during peak hours.
In a short statement, the state power distributor explained that so far, 630 distribution transformers within communities across its operational areas have been identified to be "full" due to increased power demand.
The situation, it noted, "may result in blown fuses and broken conductors causing outages, especially during the peak load period (7 pm - 11 pm) in the affected areas".
“However, we wish to assure our customers that transformer upgrading and new projects are ongoing to relieve these transformers to ensure a more reliable power supply,” the statement added.
It said: “Customers within the under-listed communities/localities are, therefore, advised to report any localised outage or voltage fluctuations to the ECG Call Center on 0302-611611 (also available on WhatsApp) or reach us on our social media handles via ECGghOfficial (Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram) for prompt rectification".
The latest explanation from the ECG differs from an earlier one offered by the company when the power supply challenges started.
The company's Managing Director (MD), Mr Samuel Dubik Mahama, had attributed the problem to maintenance issues.
“We are having major maintenance issues. The issue we are having now has nothing to do with fuel. You are relying on a power plant that is to give you about 360 megawatts then around 4 pm the gas emergency safety valve has a problem. What do you do? It is a machine,” he said.