Dumsor can win NPP 2016 – KNUST lecturer

A political science lecturer at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Dr Samuel Adu-Gyamfi, has said the current load shedding being experienced in some parts of the country may give an upper hand to the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) in next year’s presidential election, but will not guarantee them the most seats in parliament.

Speaking to Accra News Friday January 1, 2016 on how the current energy challenges gripping the nation can affect the political fortunes of the governing NDC in the general elections, Dr Adu-Gyamfi said: “It is a weapon for the opposition in cosmopolitan areas such as Accra, Kumasi, Tamale, and Sunyani. NDC already has its strongholds; that’s why I said even if the issue of load shedding becomes compounded, the worst that will happen to the NDC is that they will lose the election, but the NPP will not win parliamentary majority.”

He said Ghana’s power challenges, which have persisted since 2012, could have been handled better by former Power Minister Dr Kwabena Donkor while in office. According to him, rather than play politics with the matter, Dr Donkor should have informed Ghanaians of a strategy to arrest the problem.

“The man played politics with it, and that was what worked against him. If only he had told Ghanaians the truth from the outset and made us aware of our capacity and the plan in place to address it. But with this outcome, he has failed. He has caused a further loss of faith in the president regarding resolution of the power crisis,” Dr Adu-Gyamfi said.

Dr Donkor resigned December 31, 2015 after promising in February 2015 to step down at the end of that year if he failed to solve the issue of load shedding.