The usually quiet Finance and Economic Planning Minister, Mr Kwadwo Baah-Wiredu at the weekend, took on the National Democratic Congress (NDC) for making unfulfilled promises about tackling energy crisis during its tenure of office and turning round this time to blame the current government for not doing much about the energy problems in the country.

He revealed that the NDC had in its State of the Nation address in 1995 said its government would construct dams on Rivers Ankobra, Tano and Pra but at the time they were leaving office they had done nothing.

Baah-Wiredu revealed again that in the 1998 State of the Nation address of the NDC it stated that it was going to construct the Bui Dam, but it also turned out to be an empty promise. The Finance Minister pointed out that the NPP government on the contrary, had since 2001, invested massively in the energy sector. He cited the Aboadze Thermal plant, which according to him, was operating at 17% at the time the NDC handed over power but had been improved upon by the NPP to operate at 90% capacity.

He further mentioned the Akosombo Dam’s six turbines, out of which the NDC government was able to retrofit only one, with the remaining five being retrofitted by the current government, thus adding on 108 megawatts of power in less than its mandated 8 years as against the PNDC/NDC’s 19 years.

He faulted the NDC for making mere promises without backing them with action and revealed that it was the NPP government that secured a loan of $40 million from Nigeria to pay as its commitment to the West African Gas Pipeline project (WAGP).

The finance minister, who is also known as Action Man, disclosed that he was in Akosombo with a delegation of Chinese engineers, who are in the country in connection with the construction of the Bui Dam. He said the NPP government under President Kufuor, remains focused on getting the energy requirements for the country. This he said involved the exploitation of all sources of energy, be it wind, hydro, bio, marine, oil, gas, solar, waste and nuclear.

Mr Baah-Wiredu, who made these disclosures in an interview with The Chronicle, observed that the energy crisis was a challenge and an opportunity for us to exploit knowledge and put it into good use. He advocated the need for sustainable tarrifs for the use of electricity, pointing out that if an amount of ¢10,000 is spent for the generation of electricity and the consumer pays only ¢6,000 then the system cannot be sustained.

The Finance minister also took a swipe at the NDC for suggesting that the former Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC) boss, Mr Tsatsu Tsikata, was the brain behind the realisation of the WAGP. He asked whether it was Mr Tsikata who built the Kpong Dam, which he said was commissioned by then PNDC under the Chairmanship of Mr. Rawlings on July 1, 1982 after the murder of the judges.

Mr Baah-Wiredu also took Nana Konadu Agyemang Rawlings to the cleaners over her pronouncements on the redenomination of the cedi. He explained that unlike the withdrawal of the ¢50 notes in 1982, when some people lost their investments, under the redenomination of the current cedi, nobody is going to lose money.

He alleged that Nana Konadu Agyemang Rawlings was putting up a house at Ajirigano in Accra and asked where she got the money from. He said the Rawlings’ educated all their four children abroad against the ideals and principles of June 4, which were used to kill, terrorise, imprison people and confiscate assets.

Mr Baah-Wiredu explained that the Bank of Ghana, as part of its administrative costs, prints currency notes to replace spoiled ones every year.

This, he observed, would reduce the number of notes that will need replacement under the new Ghana cedi. On why Ghana is introducing the Ghana cedi ahead of the proposed common currency for West Africa, the Eco, he explained that the country needed to strengthen its currency.

Asked when the Eco is supposed to take off, he said, on paper, it is to be in place in 2009, but that it would take some time before the currency is issued.

According to the finance minister, the equivalent rates of the dollar against the currencies of the other member countries of the proposed Eco are lower than that of Ghana.