Energy Minister John Abdulai Jinapor has uncovered alleged fraudulent activities within the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG), particularly in the management of essential equipment.
Jinapor revealed that ECG has repeatedly failed to clear critical electrical supplies from the port, resulting in significant financial losses. He cited a disturbing case where valuable equipment was left unclaimed and later auctioned at a fraction of its actual worth.
“I checked with the port, and the security report I received indicates that a container valued at approximately $500,000 was imported. ECG failed to clear it, and somehow, it was auctioned for just 100,000 cedis, only for the same equipment to be resold to ECG for $300,000,” he disclosed in an interview with TV3.
Outraged by the situation, the minister vowed to put an end to such practices, emphasizing his determination to enforce accountability.
“This will stop. And I mean it will stop. Whatever it takes, no matter how unpopular, we must take decisive action,” he asserted. The revelation has sparked serious concerns over financial mismanagement at ECG, prompting urgent calls for reform.
In response, Minister Jinapor has established a committee to investigate ECG’s procurement activities under the Akufo-Addo administration, aiming to ensure transparency and prevent further irregularities.
“So we’ve commissioned a committee to investigate ECG’s procurements and the cost of these containers stuck at the ports. The committee is doing a very good job,” he added.
Jinapor further disclosed that, based on the preliminary findings, former ECG managers failed to adhere to proper procurement processes and guidelines.
“So far, the preliminary reports I have gotten indicate that there’s massive rot at ECG.”
In response to these findings, the Minister announced plans for a broader audit of the energy sector, including a human resource and technical review.
“But beyond that, there will be another technical report. What the PwC has done is a financial audit. We want to do a human resource audit, a deeper audit of the entire energy sector, which will then give us a clear picture of the inefficiencies so that we can tailor that in terms of our policy objective and policy directive to address this.” Jinapor disclosed.
