Senior and junior staff members of the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) in the Ashanti region have given the regional minister, Simon Osei Mensah, up to Tuesday, April 23, to apologise for causing the arrest of General Manager, Mr. Michael Wiafe.
The Union has also asked the Minister to discontinue the police case filed against the General Manager within the same period or they will “hoist red flags and be in red on Wednesday, 24th April 2024″ to register their displeasure with the actions of the Minister.
The Public Utilities Worker’s Union (PUWU) of the Trades Union Congress (TUC) and members of the general public have criticised the minister but no official statement has been made by the police or government.
Mr. Osei Mensah filed a complaint in response to the disconnection of Kumasi Technical University (KsTU) from the national grid due to an outstanding debt of GHC1.2 million.
According to the minister, he had previously informed the ECG Ashanti Region that they should notify him before carrying out any disconnection within public universities. However, he was not informed about the disconnection at KTU, which led to his complaint.
The Regional Minister’s complaint resulted in the General Manager being detained by the police and asked to write an official statement before being granted self-recognizance bail.
But in a statement dated April 18, the staff of ECG in the Ashanti East Division said the Minister must apologise to the General Manager and the company as a whole.
They are also demanding the withdrawal of the case from the Police station by close of day, Tuesday, April 23, 2024,” …else the entire ECG Ashanti Region as a first step in registering our displeasure will hoist red flags and be in red on Wednesday, the 24 of April 2024,” the statement added.
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The statement further emphasised that ECG reserves the authority to cut off any institution or individual for failing to pay electricity bills without obtaining permission from any quarters or persons.
Meanwhile, the union further urged all state institutions, departments and agencies within the Ashanti Region to pay their electricity bills.
Read the full statement below:
