Jinapor Criticizes Akufo-Addo Over Fuel Stock Crisis

The Member of Parliament (MP) for Yapei-Kusawgu, John Abdulai Jinapor, has criticized the Akufo-Addo administration for failing to secure adequate fuel reserves to meet the country’s energy needs before leaving office.

He warned that this oversight has left the new government in a precarious situation that could escalate into a national crisis.

Speaking on JoyNews in Accra yesterday, during the swearing-in ceremony of President John Dramani Mahama at the Black Star Square, Mr. Jinapor disclosed alarming figures about the country’s fuel stock. He revealed that Ghana’s current reserves of heavy fuel oil like diesel could last only two days, while other fuel stocks were down to a critical five-hour supply.

“Today, the confirmation we are getting is that we have only five hours of fuel stock. If you look at the heavy fuel oil and diesel, we have up to two days. So, in two days, we are likely to run out of fuel,” Mr. Jinapor stated. “This administration (NPP) has not ordered any fuel as we speak, and it takes an average of four weeks for the fuel to arrive and another four weeks for it to be treated. We are in a very serious situation.”

Mr. Jinapor added that during the transition process, the previous government claimed to have procured fuel, but his checks revealed otherwise.

He emphasized that the delay in ordering and treating fuel would take up to eight weeks, leaving the new administration scrambling to address the looming crisis.

Energy Sector Debt Worsens Crisis

The situation is compounded by a staggering energy sector debt inherited by the new administration. In July 2024, the former Minister for Finance, Mohammed Amin Adam, disclosed that the nation owed power producers $1 billion. However, President Mahama stated during the transition that the actual debt was $2.5 billion.

Mr Mahama blamed the situation on the mismanagement of the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG), which is reportedly suffering commercial and technical losses of 32%. “I don’t know which utility company can function properly with such losses,” he lamented. “The energy sector needs surgery.”

President Mahama expressed concerns that the energy sector debt could collapse Ghana’s economy despite claims by the previous administration that the economy was on sound footing.

The new government is expected to take swift action to stabilize the energy supply and address the broader economic challenges posed by the energy sector crisis.