Kwabena Donkor Hot Over Dumsor!

With just a day to the end of the year 2015, intense pressure is being brought to bear on Power Minister, Kwabena Donkor, to do the honourable thing by resigning.

This was after the minister had pleaded with Ghanaians for two weeks’ extension of his own caveat to resign after December 31, 2015, if he was not able to bring to an end the infamous load shedding popularly called dumsor-dumsor.

Barely a week to the date he set for his own resignation, Dr Donkor almost fell short of reiterating his commitment to his promise saying, “All things being equal, at the end of this year… that is seven days from today, the load shedding will end.”

He was quick to beat a hasty retreat in an attempt to buy time to save his head from the chopping board claiming, “But the only caveat I will throw in is that the end of the year can move up to about two weeks of the New Year…in the context and a broader understanding of issues, a two-week slippage will still be the end of the year.”

Even though some areas, especially in the capital city, Accra, witnessed a semblance of stable power supply during the Christmas festivities, others have also complained bitterly about worsening power supply, thereby heightening agitations for Kwabena Donkor to go.

With the power stability experienced in many parts of the country, GRIDCo was expected to announce the end to the load shedding yesterday but the statement was not forthcoming as at press time. It’s not clear why GRIDCo has to do the announcement since the company does not have any contract with power consumers; rather the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) and the Volta River Authority (VRA) – the power producer.

Agitations

An intensive campaign has already begun on the social media, especially on Facebook,being championed by groups called Red Card Movement Ghana (RCMG) and Ghana Speaks (GS) to see Dr Donkor’s exit.

That of the Red Card Movement said, “The Minister of Power Kwabena Donkor has no business staying in office for one minute past midnight, 31st December. He should do the honorable thing and resign or be pushed out,” whiles it was posted on Ghana Speaks, “2 more days for Kwabena Donkor the Minister of Power, to resign. Can you assist him with his resignation letter?”

Policy analyst and leading member of pressure group OccupyGhana, Sydney Casley Hayford, also believes Kwabena Donkor must keep to his word and resign if he fails to honour his promise to end dumsor by December 31, 2015.

He made that demand during a discussion on Accra-based Citi FM when the issue of the resignation of Madam Dzifa Attivor as Minister of Transport came up.

She tendered in her resignation letter after it had emerged that the ministry, which she headed, had contracted a private company – Smarttys Management and Programmes – to defraud the nation to the tune of GH¢3.6 million in respect of a contract for the rebranding of 116 Metro Mass buses – which should have cost GH¢11,600.00.

Reason

It is for this reason Sydney said, “On 31st December, 2015, Dr. Kwabena Donkor must hand in his resignation if he hasn’t solved the problem. He told us he will solve the problem a long time ago. He cannot wait until a week to the time and then come and tell us he needs more time to evaluate…If he wanted to end it, he should have ended it somewhere in October, done his testing and evaluation for at least the next month and said there you go, I have solved it before 31st December.”