Allow Private Sector Participation In VRA, ECG, GRIDCo, Others

 – Otumfuo Advocates, Says Diversification Is The Way To Go

The Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, has urged government to allow private sector participation in the management of state-owned enterprises to ensure efficiency and sustainability, in order to create more jobs for the growth of the country’s economy.

According to the revered Chief, state institutions like the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG), Ghana Grid Company (GRIDCo), Volta River Authority (VRA) and others, should be partly managed by the private sector to rake in the needed revenue.

Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, did not understand why all these establishments, will be in the hands of the state, but still struggling to be profitable.

He argues that, all government needs to do is to thoroughly seek competent hands for the management of these enterprises.

This, he believes would ensure vital financial investments and injection of resources necessary for the survival of these entities and boost the economy.

“VRA and others are government establishments. Let’s get up and diversify into the private sector and then we inject money in them, get the right people to do it. GRIDCo and others are all for private sector, let give them the money, get the qualified people, diverse government from it and let them do it. Either than that, the Electricity Company is in a situation we don’t know but that also must be diversify and given to the private sector”.

Why are we still holding and we don’t have the money? We are not even able to collect all the taxes that we want, we are going to IMF or money and all those things. We are hanging on to industries that we cannot maintain. Look, it is about time we face reality and decide on what government should be doing and the private sector should be doing. This is a testimony of a private sector”, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II stated.

He was speaking during the commissioning of a 430-kilometre natural gas pipeline by Genser Energy on Wednesday, April 17, 2024, from Nyinahin to Anwomase in the Ashanti Region.

According to him, government should rather worry itself more with policies that will enable the sector to thrive.

Don’t Establish Companies

In his view, time and events have shown that it is never the business of government to build companies and run them independently.

He argued that government coming up with policies, will attract the necessary investments into the country, adding that, government instituting good policies and the private sector setting up industries and companies should not be difficult for the two sides.

“It is about time that Ghana realizes that it is not going to work for government to be involved in setting up of companies without involving the private sector. It doesn’t work.

The government, should be concerned with policies and involve the private sector and you can attract more investors into the country which will create more employment”.

He added that, “It’s about time we face reality and decide on what government should be doing and what the private sector should be doing. This is a testimony of the private sector, and they were able to attract investors”.

Ashanti, Hub of Industries

Meanwhile, at the same event, the Minister for Energy, Dr Mathew Opoku Prempeh, gave the clearest indication that the Ashanti Region, would soon have enough electricity for both domestic and industrial purposes.

The Minister who is also the Member of Parliament (MP) for Manhyia South constituency said, the agenda of government, is to make the region an industrial hub, as it was many years ago.

Dr Opoku Prempeh, who said this at the Manhyia Palace yesterday ahead of the commissioning of the Kumasi 1 Thermal Plant former Ameri Power Plant, touted the achievements of the government on the sector saying, the relocation of the Plant from Takoradi, is going to boost the economy and generate more employment.

The dentist, said this will be made possible with the coming in of a number of power plants that are being built with the region in mind.

He listed in particular, the Volta River Authority (VRA), Absa Energy, as well as the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT) that have assured they are sending their plants to the region for this industrialization drive.

“Absa Energy is going to build a huge plant also to serve and create power in Kumasi, VRA itself has started, in fact we have other plants, it is going to bring to Kumasi and also SSNIT. I know they have got a plant to also come and locate it in Kumasi. Very soon, there will be so much power to help industrialization in Ashanti”.

He said, “When you go into the history of Ghana, Ashanti for years was the hub for industrialization in the country and surely under Otumfuo Osei Tuu II, Ashanti will come back as the industrial hub of this country.”

Source: Anchorghana.com