By Jibril Abdul Mumuni
Accra, April 11, GNA – The Public Utility Workers’ Union (PUWU) has urged the government to allow the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) to access capital markets as a practical alternative to privatization.
Speaking at a press conference, PUWU General Secretary, Timothy Nyame, emphasized the union’s stance against private sector participation in ECG, advocating for the company to secure funding independently while maintaining public ownership.
PUWU stated that capital market access, paired with opportunities reserved for private entities, would address ECG’s financial challenges effectively.
In a position paper submitted to the Ministerial Committee, PUWU highlighted challenges in the energy sector, including financial burdens, revenue collection issues, high procurement costs, political interference, ineffective governance, and procurement irregularities.
It described privatization as unsustainable and proposed several reforms.
These reforms include forming a stakeholder board, empowering the Energy Ministry to oversee operations, setting clear deliverables for the ECG Managing Director, enforcing competitive procurement, renegotiating tariffs in cedis, reforming the PURC Act, integrating ECG into the SHEP project, and removing political interference.
The union underscored the importance of strengthening ECG as a public utility to ensure affordable electricity, preserve national sovereignty, protect jobs, and support socio-economic development.
GNA
KAS