The Public Utilities Workers Union (PUWU) picketed at the premises of the Trades Union Congress (TUC), on Wednesday, demanding that redundancy payments be made to ECG staff ahead of the privatization of the company, under the US’ Millennium Power Compact II programme.

[contextly_sidebar id=”H1K7LiYkap4svXpwhVNSrf2a6szQAY5t”]Responding to the protests, the Minister of Energy, Boakye Agyarko said that the workers who want their severance packages would be paid, but would have to leave the company.

He added that, these workers would not be guaranteed a place at the new company once ECG’s privatization is complete.

“…If you decide to leave ECG, then you will be paid your severance, but you should not have the expectation or guarantee that the new company will take you on. You have made a decision to sever your relations with ECG, and it should not put you in a faithful expectation that going forward you have a job with the new company. So it is opened, all the ECG workers who want to leave and not join the new company are at liberty to do so and their severance so arranged,” Boakye Agyarko said.

But speaking on Eyewitness News on Wednesday, Kofi Davor backed the Energy Minister’s position, suggesting that the workers’ actions were premature.

He explained that the workers were only entitled to severance packages if the new company offered terms that were worse than what they were currently enjoying.

He, however added that, there was a chance the new company could retain the current terms of their contracts or even offer them improved terms.

He further explained the laws which governs the payment of severance package, stating that “The law states that in event of a worker becoming worse off as a result of a restructuring, like what is going on in ECG, you pay him, you negotiate a severance package with him or her, and pay him same, and based upon that his contract is terminated, you cannot take severance package and remain in the organization. Unless the employer chooses to gives you an appointment”.

“If there is a merger or a takeover or restructuring just like what we have, and the conditions of employment are made worse off as a result, then the worker would be entitled to a payment of severance package,” he added.

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By: Ann-Shirley Ziwu/citifmonline.com/Ghana

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PUWU further accused the US Ambassador of “tacitly blackmailing” the government of Ghana into implementing the compact.

Mr. Jackson in a media interview claimed that “it’s too late to renegotiate [the compact II]… we are certainly willing to talk about how it will be executed. I’m certain that the compact as it’s structured it’s great for Ghana.”

But Speaking to Citi News, PUWU insisted that, the comment seeks to tie the hands of government; a situation they argue breaches sections of the compact that provides for amendments.

While decrying the silence of government over the matter, the General Secretary of PUWU, Michael Adumatta Nyantakyi, called on President Akufo-Addo to as a matter of urgency make good his campaign promise of engaging stakeholders on the matter.

“The United States Ambassador to Ghana, Mr. Robert Jackson reacted with remarks that it was too late for renegotiation so government should go ahead with the implementation of the compact. The US Ambassador’s remark is viewed as unfortunate.”

Although Mr. Nyantakyi said PUWU was not against the Compact II, he explained that they are only “opposed to the handing over of ECG to a private entity for 25 years. The union is against the single concession which is tantamount to creating a virtual drive monopoly in the electricity distribution,” he added.

The PUWU General Secretary further noted that, during the electioneering, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo promised to hold wide consultations before rolling out the Compact II, if elected into office.

According to him, the President should fulfill the promise by taking a decision on the matter.

“In the course of the campaign, the then candidate, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo in an answer to a question in this hall, promised that, should he be elected into office, he will undertake consultations with stakeholders including labour before taking any decision. PUWU believes that it is time for complex actions to be taken for the proposed dialogue to be initiated with labour and other stakeholders, so that views from the consultation will assist the President in taking the best decision on the matter,” Mr. Nyanatakyi added.

The Compact II agreement

Ghana and the Millennium Challenge Corporation of the US government signed the second Compact in October 2016.

The agreement brought to total $1.4 billion received by the government to be injected into the country’s energy sector geared towards making the ECG more efficient.

The project under the compact includes the ECG Financial and Operational Turnaround Project, NEDCo Financial and Operational Turnaround Project, Regulatory Strengthening and Capacity Building Project, and Access Project.

The rest are Power Generation Sector Improvement Project and Energy Efficiency, and Demand Side Management Project.

Ghana should be fighting against ECG concession

However, a number of institutions including civil society organisations, have kicked against its implementation.

A member of the Public Interest and Accountability Committee (PIAC), Dr. Steve Manteaw recently argued that the country should completely reject the MCC Compact II.

In Dr. Manteaw’s view, “the credibility of the whole concession arrangement has been shattered completely”  insisting that “we should be rejecting it outright.”

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By: Godwin Akweiteh Allotey/citifmonline.com/Ghana
Follow @AlloteyGodwin

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MiDA, is one of the defendants in a lawsuit filed by a member of the opposition New Patriotic Party’s (NPP) communications team, Saaka Salia, that is challenging its [MiDA’s] competence to serve as an advisor in the concession arrangement for the ECG.

[contextly_sidebar id=”Lo51FqZNouZ29ErAkavMJWn0tiyfO9o6″]A letter written by Mr Saaka Salia and sighted by citifmonline.com cautioned MiDA to cancel the planned event to avoid being in contempt of court.

The letter said “This is in blatant contempt of court as an injunction is pending in court against defendants from proceeding with or in any way whatsoever dealing with or participating in any processes touching and concerning further activities or dealings with the ongoing PSP in ECG processes in proposed Concession for the Management of, Operation of, and Investments in the Electricity Distribution Business of the Electricity Company of Ghana Limited, until the case has been determined.”

“Please be guided that recently the Electoral Commission suspended receiving nomination fees for the 2016 elections when it was served with similar processes. It only called for those fees after the court had heard the application and dismissed it,” he letter added.

Read the full letter below:

MILLENNIUM DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY

Dear Sir,

RE: CAUTION

It has come to my notice, rather shockingly, that you, a defendant in the case I filed impugning the ECG PSP, have slated a bidder’s conference for Monday 31st October here in Accra.

This is in blatant contempt of court as an injunction is pending in court against defendants from proceeding with or in any way whatsoever dealing with or participating in any processes touching and concerning further activities or dealings with the ongoing PSP in ECG processes in proposed Concession for the Management of, Operation of, and Investments in the Electricity Distribution Business of the Electricity Company of Ghana Limited, until the case has been determined.

All four Defendants have been served with the injunction application filed earlier this month and a first court attendance slated for Wednesday 2nd November 2016.

Please be guided that recently the Electoral Commission suspended receiving nomination fees for the 2016 elections when it was served with similar processes. It only called for those fees after the court had heard the application and dismissed it.

You are cautioned against this act in trying to overreach the courts of Ghana and treat them with disregard as you did and the Energy Commission accused you of forging its logo, and the PURC also accused you of usurping its mandate in the PSP process.

Be reminded that the courts attention shall be duly drawn to this contemptuous act and all those participating cited for contempt.

Saaka Salia

Plaintiff

CC:

THE ATTORNEY-GENERAL – 1ST DEFENDANT

PUBLIC UTILITIES REGULATORY COMMISSION -3RD DEFENDANT

ENERGY COMMISSION – 4TH DEFENDANT

THE REGISTRAR – HIGH COURT OF JUSTICE, GJ, ACCRA

Background

Mr Saaka Salia in September 2016 sued the Millennium Development Authority (MiDA) over the planned concession of the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG), arguing that MiDA is not fit to participate in concession arrangement for the ECG as an adviser.

Accordin to him, MIDA is not fit to participate in concession because its conduct breached Ghana’s laws after it authored and circulated a draft tariff methodology.

In an interview with Citi News, Mr Salia said “the reason for the breach is that, MiDA as well as the IFC [International Finance Corporation] collaborated and forged a document purported to be coming from the PURC, and the Energy Commission and to that extent, they allowed that fraudulent document to fill the part of the transaction process.”
Suit against ECG concession ‘baseless’ -MiDA

Meanwhile, the Millennium Development Authority (MiDA) has described a suit filed against the Power Compact II which seeks to privatize part of the Electricity Company of Ghana as lacking merit.

In an interview with Citi News, the Chief Executive Officer of MiDA, Ing. Owura Sarfo said MiDA sees the suit as incompetent.

“We have been served a copy of the suit. I will not go into the merits of the case because the case is in court. But all I will say is that that suit is incompetent, that suit is of no merit and that suit is totally false,” he said.

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By: Jonas Nyabor/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post MiDA faces contempt over planned ECG bidder’s conference appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.