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Energy Minister John Abdulai Jinapor has uncovered what he describes as fraudulent activities within the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG), particularly in the handling of critical electrical equipment.
Jinapor revealed that ECG has repeatedly failed to clear essential electrical supplies from the port, resulting in significant financial losses. One of the most alarming incidents involved a container of equipment valued at approximately $500,000, which was left unclaimed and later auctioned for just 100,000 cedis. Shockingly, the same equipment was later resold to ECG for $300,000.
“I checked with the port, and the security report I received shows that a container worth about $500,000 was imported. ECG couldn’t clear it, and somehow, someone was able to buy it at auction for 100,000 cedis, then resell it to ECG for $300,000,” Jinapor disclosed in an interview on TV3.
Expressing his determination to end such corrupt practices, the minister vowed to take decisive action despite potential pushback.
“It will stop. And I mean it will stop. Whatever it takes to stop that, no matter how unpopular that may be, we must take action,” he asserted.
The revelations have sparked serious concerns about accountability within ECG, prompting calls for urgent reforms to curb financial mismanagement.
To address these concerns, Jinapor has established a committee to investigate procurement activities within ECG, particularly those conducted during the Akufo-Addo administration.
“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 stated.
According to preliminary findings, former ECG managers failed to follow proper procurement procedures, leading to what Jinapor describes as “massive rot” within the company.
Beyond the ongoing investigations, the Minister announced plans for a comprehensive audit of the energy sector, including a human resource and technical review, to identify inefficiencies and guide future policy decisions.
“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,” he explained.
