A Board Member of the Energy Commission says he is disappointed at the way government and especially the Energy Ministry is handling issues relating to the shortage of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) in the country.

“Chuck” Kofi Wayo believes those in charge of affairs regarding the supply of the commodity lack proactiveness.

Expressing concern over the worsening crisis in the supply of LPG in Ghana, Kofi Wayo, who is also the Founder and Leader of the United Renaissance Party (URP) stated that if the Energy Ministry had planned ahead, it would have been noticeable to them that the percentage of gas usage in the country has short up to about 60%.

Many Ghanaians, especially those in Accra, for some months now have been hit by a devastating shortage of LPG, which has led to many households resorting to the use of charcoal. And it seems there is no end in sight to the spectacle of Ghanaians carrying gas cylinders from one end of the city to the other in search of the elusive commodity for now. This follows the explanation by government that the country lacks the capacity to increase its production, storage and distribution of LPG, a situation it blames on the erstwhile NPP government.

Speaking in an interview on Saturday’s edition of Okay FM’s Ade3 Akye Abia, the maverick politician said the buck stops with the Energy Minister accusing him of gross ineptitude.

“When you look at the increasing demand of LPG in Ghana, it is averaging over 40% per year and if you are a business person, you will know from statistics that there is the need to increase storage to satisfy the demand, but the people who are in government making the decisions do not what they are doing. LPG has become a major fuel in the national energy in Ghana but nothing is being done to ensure proper supply,” he said.

According to Mr. Wayo, instead of the Ministry of Energy “fixing” the teething problem confronting Ghanaians, “all they do is give statistics”.

“…the NDC was voted into power because Kufuor did not do anything to ensure efficiency in supply of energy so it is time the NDC should stop giving statistics and provide gas for the people…Government officials are only interested in attending conferences and taking per diem instead of sitting down and cracking their brains to get the work done,” he said.

Offering solutions on how best to salvage the situation, the outspoken politician advised government to increase import duties on vehicles that use LPG and also introduce a levy on vehicles that use LPG. He, however, rubbished the idea of subsidizing LPG, questioning the need to subsidize a product that is in high demand.