PDS-Krobos Impasse Over Electricity Bills: The Inside Story

Nene Sakite II, Konor of Manya Traditional Council

Contrary to what the public has been made to believe that the recent happenings in the Manya Krobo area has to do with exorbitant electricity bills or fight for free electricity allegedly promised by Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, the first President of Ghana, energynewsafrica.com can state on authority that the underlying issue is not electricity bills as being bandied about.

This portal can state that the issue of electricity bills or supposed free electricity allegedly promised by Dr Kwame Nkrumah was used as a vehicle by those behind the United Krobo Foundation to achieve a certain agenda, which, we can say for now that, has failed.

Information available to energynewsafrica.com from a grapevine indicates that half of the six divisional councils which form the Manya Krobo Traditional Council have some bone of contention with Nene Sakite II, who is the Konor of the Paramountcy.

The divisions, which currently have issues with the Konor, include Dom, Manya and Piengwua.

Our sources indicated that these divisional chiefs have tried to use several means before the electricity issue and having failed, have now latched onto the alleged exorbitant electricity bills to fan discontent in Krobokand

Checks conducted by this online indicate that the Krobos had been paying for electricity long ago until the United Krobo Foundation, formerly known as the Voice of United Krobo Force, birthed a claim that they were promised free electricity by Dr Kwame Nkrumah and by that, started inciting the gullible Krobos to refuse to pay for electricity.

According to our grapevine sources, when the United Krobo Foundation (UKF) came with this claim, the Konor challenged the group to prove its claim before he supported them, but the group failed to give concrete evidence by way of MOU.

Our sources said because the Konor did not support the idea, the divisional chiefs, which are against him  allegedly, teamed up to instigate violent clashes in the area so that they would turn around and claim that the Konor had failed in ensuring that there was peace in the area, thereby pushing for his removal from the stool.

Interestingly, the agitations are emanating from only the areas that have issues with the Konor.

It is, therefore, not surprising that none of the leadership of the towns such as Kpongunor and Yohe have not condemned the intolerant and unlawful acts of the youth, whose actions are giving the entire Kroboland a sour publicity.

It is public knowledge that the then ECG had series of engagements with all the stakeholders in the area to come to terms with them and see how best they could repay their accumulated bills.

Despite the flexible repayment terms the then ECG offered these agitating residents, they refused to adhere to the terms because they apparently knew the agenda they had kept under the carpet.

According to documents available to this portal, at a point the United Krobo Foundation demanded that the then ECG cancelled all the electricity bills they owed from 2014 to 2017, but their demands were rejected.

The question to ask is: Why did the United Krobo Foundation ask for the cancellation of almost four years’ electricity bills, when they know that it could not be possible? Is it because they have an agenda, and so those demands they made? If there were no agenda, why would they now accept to pay all the outstanding debts, something they had refused earlier?

A journalist, who is abreast with issues in the Krobo area, spoke to this portal, admitting that although he was aware of some fracas between some of the divisional chiefs and the Paramount Chief, he could, however, not confirm whether the so-called outrageous electricity bills were being used as a vehicle to fuel the chieftaincy ‘battle’.

Energynewsafrica.com’s Michael Creg Afful, who was in the Krobo area, on Sunday, gathered that the paramountcy sought the support of some political figures to intervene to resolve the matter but they declined to dabble in chieftaincy issues.

Interestingly, energynewsafrica.com was present when Energy Minister John-Peter Amewu visited Odumase to commiserate with the family of Thomas Partey, who lost his life in the course of the recent clashes, and also see Nene Sakite II, Konor of Manya Krobo Traditional Area.

Addressing the Energy Minister, the visibly distraught looking Konor told his guest that about two years ago when some residents made allegations that their electricity bills were on the higher side and protested, the then ECG convened a meeting in which it acknowledged the anomalies and promised to correct them, which they did.

He continued that the company came up with a road map which had flexible repayment plan, explaining that those who took their electricity bills to ECG were given reduction, but others also refused.

“We have not been resting on this issue. We have been meeting all the time. All the stakeholders, and as a matter of fact, tomorrow (today) afternoon, we are holding another meeting with a whole lot of people from around and we want to put our heads together to find lasting solutions to the issues we have been talking about.

“We are all concerned about high tariffs. Yes. When this thing happened about two years ago, ECG and now PDS, did confirm that there was a mistake. They found a lapse somewhere, and they were going to correct it, so we should all bring our bills and anybody at all who will suspect anything, should bring their bills. Quite a number of people did and their payments went down substantially.

“I know there are some people who have not had the opportunity yet to bring their bills, but I am urging all Krobos to bring their bills to PDS to be looked at. It is very important that…I will prefer people will bring their bills, and when they go there and nothing is being done about it, then, we will know what our response should be.

“If you don’t bring your bills over there and there is a problem, I don’t know how we are going to solve it. Some people are doing it, some are not. I am just pleading to my sons and daughters that we are not going to rest until we are able to get to the bottom of this to get the problem resolved. We are all working hard…the stakeholders, the leadership and representatives of the Regional Minister, everybody involved, and that is what I like about this, and very soon we will see better results.”

Below is the previous road map