A very good friend sent me a message, which made my title this week, and rather than re-writing history, I have decided to be very lazy and record for posterity what our chief politician has gotten away with since 2012.
An “Ntrɔ twa Preneur” makes profit from lying to us about events and in the process benefits in one form or the other for themselves. This is the definition I was sent.
So here is a list of such statements, all related to “dumsor”.
September 4 2012 — “I have directed an Inter-ministerial committee chaired by the minister with immediate effect to ensure that your power supply are not unduly disrupted
“While we are assured that there would be resumption of supply from WAGP in next few weeks, we will redouble our efforts to make up the shortfall ourselves by speeding up projects we have been working on. We have galvanized every effort to increase our generating capacity, in order that the minimum demand by our industries is met. By the end of October, we will have an additional 300 megawatts of electricity production that will come online for distribution, and this should greatly reduce the inconvenience of load-shedding
October 4 2012 — Load shedding will soon be a thing of the past – Mahama Launch of NDC Manifesto
“Ghana has a comparative advantage when it comes to production of energy. In the second NDC administration the issue of load shedding will be a thing of the past. It will never happen again. I say this because we have established the foundation to be able to achieve this promise “our vision is to hit 5,000 megawatts of power production a day in Ghana by 2015. Currently, Ghana produces a little over 2,000 megawatts. Between now and the end of the year it is our hope to put in about 350 more megawatts. Early next year, we expect another 700 megawatts to come into the system and this will make Ghana a net exporter of power.”
October 30 2012 – Dumsor Act of God to end by 1st year of next term (2012)- IEA Debate
‘A ship’s anchor cut off the West African Gas Pipeline and so 320 mw taken from the system which has necessitated load shedding at peak hours. That would end by mid-November. The pipeline has been repaired, the seawater has been pumped out, the pipeline is being dried for transmission of gas to begin. We are putting in additional thermal plants to ensure that load shedding is a thing of the past. And I have said as President that by the end of the first year of my next term of office, load shedding will be a thing of the past because we are going to add 820 megawatts of new generation into our system’
November 2 2012 – Off Peak Load shedding to end by November 5 2012 and load shedding to end by November 15 – Joe Oteng Adjei, Minister of Energy at Press Conference Organized by Ministry of Energy
“The full complement of the fuel required to fully integrate the system should be in the country by November 5, 2012. The first batch of fuel supply is being off-loaded now and we expect it to be ready for use by Monday November 5 2012. Our target is to eliminate completely the load shedding program for off-peak from Monday November 5 and that for the peak period whenever the full complement of fuel supply arrives in the country.”
February 20 2013 — Load Shedding will end Mid-Year – Mahama – Swearing in of Council of State
“If the West African gas pipe line comes on in April then Asogli can come back on and that will bring another 220 megawatts immediately and that will give us more than enough. I wish to assure the people of Ghana that we are working very hard to reduce the load shedding. I’m as uncomfortable with it as everybody else is and I’ll do everything possible to make sure that we end the load shedding by the middle of the year”.
March 2013 –Power crisis to end in June; consumers to pay more – VRA presentation to Parliamentary select committee on energy
April 8 2013 — Never Again Shall Ghana Experience Load Shedding. Off Peak Dumsor ended
Mahama Assures Nation “Government will ensure that never again shall we experience the load shedding in the coming years,” he added. President Mahama said this at the National Prayer and Thanksgiving Service at the Black Star Square, in Accra.
December 15, 2013— Energy Crisis is solved – Mahama (at the inauguration of the Revival Restoration Centre of the Assemblies of God Church in Accra)
We had the energy crises, which was popularly called ‘Dumsor’ and I was appropriately labelled the “apostle of ‘Dumsor’, ‘Dumsor” and Ghanaians in their usual humour crafted a very interesting greeting that said “Yema mo dumsor oo,” then another responds “Yaa Mahama”. I told them that I was working on the energy crises and we would solve it and I said that when we did, they should remember to use the greeting ‘Yama mo Kania oo’, with a response ‘Yaa Mahama’. However, very often in Ghana we have a very short memory.
The energy crisis is solved and we don’t remember the darkness we were in. We have put that behind us and we are looking at what the other challenges are,” said the President.
November 27 2014 — I will reduce the Impact of Dumsor – Mahama – Good Evening Ghana
President John Mahama says he has learnt not to make any more promises on when the current power crisis facing the country will end. If anything, he said his government is working assiduously to reduce the intensity of what has been described as the dumsor regime.
November 27 2014 — Power Crisis Over In May … Energy Ministry assures nation – Jinapor told Parliament when he represented his Minister to answer questions.
16th December — I will End Dumsor — Power Minister, Kwabena Donkor at his vetting
December 24 2014 — Minister Orders VRA to End Dumsor
Generators to be disconnected within six months (On his maiden visit to the Aboadze Thermal Plant ) “I urge you to put measures in place to end the current power crisis within six months”, he stressed. Dr. Donkor, indicated that he would authorise all power generators at the various VRA bungalows and chief executive officers’ residences to be disconnected if the crisis continued after the six-month period.
31st December 2014 — “I will banish Dumsor Forever”- John Mahama
“Now this is the interesting part; it [2015] will be one in which we will banish darkness from our land and put an end to dumsor forever,” he said.
May 1 2015- Lack of money not cause of ‘dumsor’ – Prez Mahama at May Day Celebrations.
“Our current challenge is not because we don’t have money to buy crude oil as some people will want us to believe.”
October 19, 2015 – “If you want Dumsor to end then you have to PAY HIGHER ELECTRICITY BILLS”- John Mahama,
Speaking on Garden City Radio in the Ashanti Region, President Mahama said dumsor would only end if Ghanaians would become realistic and pay more for power supply.
“If we genuinely want reliable, sustainable power then the price will have to go up…that is the reality…if we don’t want any more dumsor then we will have to pay more,” President Mahama said.
November 14 2015 – “Dumsor will end before elections 2016” – Mahama told supporters in Tamale
This litany of failed promises disguises the bad financial decisions and policies Government has made as we leap into the election year.
We have all just sighted the uncomfortable report from a foreign newspaper narrating the deal surrounding the AMERI energy contract signed by Kwabena Donkor. It is frightening, but there is a different truth hidden away from us. This contract spans twenty years with a fuel purchase agreement and other built in costs.
We are being fleeced somewhat to pay more for electricity consumption, but we are actually paying for bad deals, hidden kick backs and more.
We are in deeper trouble than we know.
Ghana, Aha a yε din papa. Alius atrox week advenio. Another terrible week to come!
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