Ghana: Opposition Leader Takes On Government For Failing To Increase Electricity Access

Former President and current flag-bearer of Ghana’s largest opposition party, the National Democratic Congress (NDC), John Dramani Mahama, has accused his successor and flag-bearer of the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP), President Nana Akufo-Addo, of failing to increase electricity access in the West African nation to, at least, 90 percent.

According to Mr Mahama, he had expected the Akufo-Addo-led administration to increase electricity access to Ghanaians by 90 percent if not 100 percent from the 79.3 percent access rate before losing political power in December 2016.

Unfortunately, he said the current administration could only increase electricity access by a partly three percentage point.

Ghanaians will go to the polls on December 7, 2020, to elect a President and Members of Parliament (MPs) to steer the affairs of the country for the next four years.

Ahead of the polls, the governing party, New Patriotic Party (NPP), on August 22, 2020, outdoored its 2020 Manifesto. The NDC is also expected to outdoor theirs later today, Monday, September 7, 2020.

In a statement released ahead of today’s event, the former Ghanaian leader said: “In 2012, 69.2 percent of Ghanaians had access to electricity. In 2016, when I left office, after my first term as President, 79.3 percent of Ghanaians had access to electricity representing a ten-percentage points increase in 4 years.

Ghana: Four New Oil Refineries In The Offing

“When I left office, I was confident that a new government would deliver 90 percent, if not 100 percent access to electricity in the next four years.

“However, the NPP government increased overall access to electricity from 79.3 percent to only 82.3 percent, a mere three percentage points increase,” the former President noted.

He promised to increase the access rate to 100 percent if Ghanaians vote for him to lead the country again.

“I run for President because I want to leave a legacy: a solid infrastructure, with 100 percent access for all. With this legacy, we will build a truly developed Ghana, on a par with the advanced nations,” he said.

Meanwhile, checks by energynewsafrica.com indicate that the 82.3 percent quoted by the former President is inaccurate.

According to report titled: ‘Ghana Power Report 2019/2020’, the country’s electricity access rate is around 84.98 percent.

Source:www.energynewsafrica.com