A former Chief Director of the Ministry of Energy, Lawrence Apaalse, has observed that the primary reason why Ghana’s national oil company (GNPC) has failed to live up to the expectation of Ghanaians over the years is the neglect of appointing authorities to appoint scientists or someone with technical expertise as CEO to manage the affairs of the corporation.
He argued that since GNPC is a scientific institution, there is the need to appoint people with technical acumen to head it to bear fruitful results.
“I think you need a scientist to run a scientific institution,” Mr Apaalse strongly suggested.
The corporation has often been lambasted by the public for making wrongful decisions.
Speaking in an exclusive interview with energynewsafrica.com, Mr Apaalse said over the past years, only people with business orientation have been allowed to direct the affairs of GNPC and this has resulted in multiple failures.
He cited the Sankofa Gold Mines which was doing badly but when it was given to Mr Theophilus Ahwireng during the President Kufuor era, he turned the company around within a year, adding that “this should be the standardised practice.
“Several non-scientists were managing the Sankofa Gold Mines that was being run by GNPC. The company was always in debt. At one point during President Kufuor’s era, they appointed Theophilus Ahwireng to go and see what he could do. And within a year, the company was making a profit. They paid their debts, and the workers were very happy. After a while, Mr Theophilus was moved to the Petroleum Commission and today, Sankofa Gold Mines is in a mess again. So it’s one-man factor. So if you send someone who has just done business administration, he is just doing the business aspect, but the scientist would follow steps to achieve results,” he argued.
Mr. Apaalse lamented that it was only during Dr. Amos Ofori Quaah’s short spell which resulted in a positive dividend for the GPNPC.
Dr. Quaah is a Geophysicist who started work with GNPC in 1985 and was appointed CEO in 2001 but resigned in 2002.
Mr Apaalse noted that the current acting CEO of GNPC and his deputies, together with the board, are not scientists.
He called for a blend of scientists and business-oriented Chief Executives to help resuscitate the corporation.
“Look at the board. They have a complete board managing a scientific institution without a scientist among them,” he lamented.
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