A former Deputy Energy Minister, K.T Hammond has described the government’s decrease in the price of fuel as “insulting” to Ghanaians, adding that it is “too little, extremely too late.”
Fuel prices will be be reduced by 2 percent in accordance with reduction in the prices of crude oil and petroleum products on the world market, according to a statement issued by the National Petroleum Authority (NPA) on Monday.
But the Member of Parliament for Adansi Asokwa says the reduction by the government is not enough and the rate of the reduction is insulting to Ghanaians.
[contextly_sidebar id=”3A4ys8Wpgc16FJ5q9jjozX9J6yxe0NOj”]According to Mr. K.T Hammond, the government’s reasons for increasing the fuel prices in the first place were dubious and the recent improvements in both situations should have provoked a greater rate of decrease in the prices.
He said on Eyewitness News on Monday: “The prices went up on the basis of what the government indicated at the time. First was the international price of crude; I didn’t even believe that that was true because I had always said that it was coming down. Second was the depreciation of the cedi,” he said.
“Now the cedi has appreciated, by whatever steroids have been applied to the economy. The combined effect of the appreciation of the cedi and the nosediving in the international prices of crude should have resulted in a rather dramatic reduction. Not two percent, that is a charade.”
The government has attributed the low rate of reduction to the need to clear the prevailing debt owed by the Bulk Distributing Companies (BDCs) to the banks in the country.
But Mr. Hammond, who believes that there is no accumulation of debt by the BDCs, as claimed by the government, said: “What is the story about? Government has to be fair, has to be truthful to the people of Ghana. It is not right,” he stated.
“I don’t even appreciate the fact that it is even true that there is any accumulation. If there’s an accumulation a basis for that. If we already know that there are no subsidies then what is this business of telling us that there is accumulation somewhere. If you keep changing the goal posts, everybody will see through, we’ll see through the lies.”
The fuel reduction takes effect from Tuesday, October 21.
By: Edwin Kwakofi/citifmonline.com/Ghana