Thursday, 09 January

Krapa refutes load shedding claims, urges NDC to focus on power sector management

General News
Herbert Krapa

Former Minister for Energy, Herbert Krapa, has dismissed claims of imminent load shedding in Ghana, urging the newly elected National Democratic Congress (NDC) government to focus on effective power sector management rather than attributing blame to the previous administration.

Responding to allegations made by John Jinapor, Co-Chairman of the Transition Team’s Energy and Natural Resources sub-committee, Krapa refuted claims that the country’s fuel stock is critically low and warned against creating unnecessary panic.

“Mr. Jinapor is wrong. Load shedding does not ‘loom.’ It is caused either by technical issues or incompetence in managing the power sector.

Mr. Jinapor seems to be haunted clearly by the latter,” Krapa stated in a rebuttal.

Jinapor had earlier alleged that the outgoing Akufo-Addo administration left the power sector in crisis, claiming Ghana has only five hours' worth of fuel for power generation, a situation he said could lead to nationwide outages.

Krapa countered these assertions, emphasizing that the Akufo-Addo administration ensured a reliable supply of fuel before leaving office.

“By the time we exited, the government had left sufficient light crude oil for Cenpower’s operations and arranged for AKSA to continue receiving heavy fuel oil for power generation,” he explained.

He stressed that the responsibility of maintaining a stable electricity supply now rests with the new government.

“It is up to the NDC administration to procure additional liquid fuel as needed and plan effectively to prevent disruptions.

We managed to keep the lights on for eight years, and they can do it too if they plan competently,” Krapa added.

The former minister also urged the new government to focus on practical solutions instead of engaging in “needless finger-pointing.” He noted.

“The NDC government should get to work, just as we did, to ensure the stability of power supply for all Ghanaians.”

 

Source: Classfmonline.com/Cecil Mensah