Policy think tank, IMANI Africa, has stated
that the government is to blame for the Power Distribution Services (PDS)
‘mess’ however, it disagrees with calls
for the prosecution of its directors following their botched deal with the government
and Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG).
“We also don’t accept the view that PDS principals should be prosecuted, it is
obvious their challenge is lack of capacity and resources, which led them to
rely on insurance brokers and other advisors of rather questionable quality
which is not a crime per se because it is the government that should have
ensured the ‘mess’ did not happen in the first place,” it said.
But a statement issued by Franklin Cudjoe,
the President of IMANI Africa on the development, said those calls are not
supported by the facts of the matter and also faulted the government for turn
of events and withdrawal of compact support and assisted by US government.
“What is required at this stage is
strategic partner with muscle to invest $650 million to modernise the grid, staying
with PDS in the hope of securing $190 million from the US-controlled Millennium
Challenge Corporation (MCC) does not help us achieve goal.
“This is however, not to endorse the
government’s actions, we fault its role in anointing PDS following shambolic
local content “farm-in” processes that it supported and assisted throughout
when it shouldn’t have, having got to messy situation as a result of the
government’s actions, termination is least problematic of options available, we
also urge the government to be transparent in quest for private investor in
power sector.
“It is important to also point out that
so long as the Public Utility Regulation Company remains a politicised
institution packed with government-friendly appointees instead of highly professionalised, technocratic, regime
charged with focused solely on technical standards regulation, consumer rights,
dispute resolution, adjudication within energy value chain, anti-competitive behaviour,
corporate governance, tariff setting based on transparent technical formula, we
will not find strategic partner to put in considerable investment required to
modernise the grid.
“The government’s preference for
backroom dealing, exemplified by its proposal to use restricted tendering to
select new partners, after has happened, completely needless, posture should
change completely, we are tired of botched utility reform projects in the
country,” the statement said. -starrfmonline.com
