The Minority in Parliament has demanded a full explanation for two nationwide power outages recorded in the country within one month, insisting that brief statements announcing the disruptions and subsequent restoration are not sufficient.
The Minority Leader, Alexander Afenyo-Markin, said the outages had raised serious questions about the reliability and resilience of the country’s power supply system.
He said the country experienced total power disruptions on July 29 and again on August 20, leaving households, hospitals and businesses without electricity.
According to Mr. Afenyo-Markin, the second disruption occurred barely three weeks after the first and was attributed by the Ghana Grid Company Limited (GRIDCo) to a fault on the Akosombo water line which tripped generating units.History
He said the repeated outages warranted detailed explanations to Parliament and the Ghanaian public.
“In a space of one month, Ghana has twice been plunged into total darkness,” he said.
Mr. Afenyo-Markin criticised what he described as the limited information provided to the public following the disruptions.
He said Ghanaians had received statements announcing the outages and subsequent restoration but deserved more comprehensive explanations about what caused the incidents and how similar occurrences would be prevented.
The Minority Leader said the country’s electricity grid should be treated as critical national infrastructure and that Parliament could not allow press statements to substitute for proper accountability.
He, therefore, announced that the Minority would seek to have the Minister for Energy and Green Transition appear before Parliament to account for the state of the power sector.
He also indicated that the Minority could push for an investigation into the causes of the outages.
“We therefore give notice, in accordance with the provisions of Order 216(2)(d) of our Standing Orders, of our intention to push that the Minister for Energy and Green Transition appear before this House to account fully for the state of our power sector, and/or that a probe be opened into causes of these outages,” he said.
Mr. Afenyo-Markin said the Minority would not allow the matter to be dismissed through official statements without a deeper examination of the causes.
He said Ghanaians deserved to know why the outages were occurring and what measures were being put in place to prevent their recurrence.
The Minority Leader said the matter was particularly important because the power supply system affected homes, hospitals and businesses across the country.
He maintained that Parliament had a responsibility to demand answers and ensure that appropriate measures were taken to improve the reliability of electricity supply.
The Minority is therefore expected to pursue parliamentary scrutiny of the recent outages, including the appearance of the Energy and Green Transition Minister and, if approved, a possible investigation into the causes of the disruptions.
By Ernest Kofi Adu, Parliament House
