Corrupt politicians hiding to buy off ECG – Asante Yeboah

A leading member of the Coalition of Civil Society Organisations kicking against the concession of the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) Mr. Richard Asante-Yeboah has alleged that the supposed concessionary deal of state-power distributor is to benefit a consortium of politicians who are hiding behind some Chinese partners to buy the company off.

“If the company is not viable then why are they hiding behind to buy it off. Most of the report we’ve gathered is that those who are bidding for the deal currently are mostly Ghanaian politicians who have secretly formed consortium with Chinese companies and other partners like former executives of ECG to buy the company off,” Asante-Yeboah told host Fiifi Banson on Anopa Kasapa on Kasapa 102.5 FM.

He reiterated that the deal would lead to high tariff regime, and massive layoff of workers, casting doubt as to the extent the move would benefit the larger society.

According to him, government was obsessed with financial investment of a strategic national asset which has monopoly over the industry, bemoaning that the “Asset of ECG is worth 4.8 billion dollars and we’re giving it on concession at a rate less than 500 million dollars.”

Asante-Yeboah said privatizing ECG, which undoubtedly is the second state institution after IRS that has high yielding revenue is unthinkable casting doubt of the profitability of the move.

He also complained about what it calls fraud and forgery imminent in the concession deal citing the Draft Tariff Methodology document of the PURC and a statement in the name of the Energy Commission to which the PURC and the commission have both issued disclaimers on it.

He claimed the legal action set by the Coalition to battle the fraudulent deal will be pursued aggressively to the letter to salvage the company of the fraudulent activities inherent in the privatization move.