NDC Minority Fights Akufo-Addo Over Mahama Dumsor

The Minority Caucus of the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC) in Parliament has strongly condemned President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo’s remarks regarding former President John Mahama and the issue of ‘dumsor’ (a local term for power outages) in Ghana.

During the commissioning ceremony of the Accra Central Bulk Supply Point, President Akufo-Addo made statements indicating that Ghanaians would not experience the dark days of power crisis under his administration.

He reassured the public that his government would work tirelessly to ensure a consistent power supply, emphasizing that going back to the era of ‘dumsor’ was not an option, and he associated that with President Mahama.

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Reacting to the President’s comments, the NDC Minority, specifically the Ranking Member on the Mines and Energy Committee, John Abdulai Jinapor, issued a statement expressing deep concern over Akufo-Addo’s decision to attack the person of former President Mahama during the event.

Jinapor pointed out that the 161kV Bulk Supply Point project in Accra Central was actually initiated by the Mahama-led government in 2014.

He clarified that all the necessary regulatory, financial, and technical approvals were obtained during Mahama’s presidency, and the construction work on the project began in 2016, before Mahama handed over power to the current administration.

Jinapor further supported his claims by referring to various sources, including the 2017 and 2018 Annual Reports of the Ghana Grid Company (GRIDCo) and a 2015 Preparatory Survey Report on The Project for Power Supply to Accra Central, published on the website of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).

These documents substantiated that the project was indeed initiated and progressed significantly under Mahama’s government.

Therefore, the NDC Minority found it surprising that President Akufo-Addo chose the occasion of the project commissioning to make baseless and unfounded allegations against his predecessor.

The Minority went on to mention that Vice-President Dr. Mahamoud Bawumiah, a member of the ruling government, had previously acknowledged that Mahama was responsible for ending the ‘dumsor’ crisis.

By referencing Bawumiah’s statement, the NDC Minority implied that Akufo-Addo should consult his own Vice-President to confirm the significant role Mahama played in resolving the power crisis.

Expressing their disappointment, the Minority Caucus criticized Akufo-Addo for failing to acknowledge Mahama’s contributions and instead choosing to launch baseless attacks against him.

They highlighted the fact that the Accra Central Bulk Supply Point, described as a gamechanger by the current GRIDCo Board Chair, was Mahama’s brainchild. The Minority reminded the President of the saying, “you do not bite the hand that fed you,” suggesting that he should have shown gratitude towards his predecessor.