Asks Nana Akua Tweneboah-Koduah

September 24, 2013

Ghana is blessed with three major cables and cabling companies. They are Nexans Kabelmetal (GH) Limited, Tropical Cables & Conductor Company Limited and Reroy Cables Limited.

The oldest among the three is Nexans Kabelmetal which was opened for business way back in July 31, 1970 following a feasibility study by a German company, Planunggruppe Juergen Ritcher, with the backing of the National Investment Bank.

Nexans Kabelmetal, which has presence in more than 20 countries, keeps expanding in infinite capacities of cables which are needed for advanced systems and technologies in energy, telecommunications, buildings, automobile, trains and aeronautics among others.

Next come Reroy Cables Company which was incorporated in 1992 to manufacture, process and sell electrical cables and accessories both for local and the international market.

Reroy has one of the largest electrical cables manufacturing plants in Ghana which serves high value-added electrical products to government, utility companies and estate developers.

Tropical Cables & Conductor Limited is the baby and brain-child of Tony Oteng Gyasi who set it up in 1997 as the only wholly-owned Ghanaian cable manufacturing company.

Tropical Cables, which manufactures electrical and telecommunications cables is the first cable manufacturer in Ghana with ISO 9001 Certification. Tony Oteng Gyasi is the, Owner, Chairman and Managing Director of Tropical Cables & Conductor Limited.

It must be noted that Nexans Kabelmetal, Reroy Cables and Tropical Cables are major competitive suppliers of electrical cables and accessories to both the Electricity Corporation of Ghana (ECG) and the Ministry of Energy.

Since these three companies are major competitors, it will sound a little odd and even embarrassing for any Official, Owner or Director of any of these companies to be found in a conflict of interest in any dealings with the ECG and the Ministry of Energy.

But it seems we have such a major problem on hand following the nomination and confirmation of Tony Oteng Gyasi as the Board Chairman of the ECG. Tony Oteng Gyasi’s Company, Tropical Cables deals extensively with the ECG in terms of selling of cables and accessories.

Therefore, with the current dual role of Tony Oteng Gyasi as the Founder, Owner, Chairman and Managing Director of Tropical Cables and the Board Chairman of the ECG, where lies the boundary of these institutions?

We all know that President John Mahama wants a government of inclusiveness whereby he wants to tap Ghanaians with something good to offer the country to play their part. But when Tony Oteng Gyasi was nominated as the Board Chair of the ECG, there were some uproar from certain quarters that he was an NPP person.

To me that party colour thing counts but it is not as serious as Tony Oteng Gyasi being the owner of a major cable company and supplier to ECG and also doubling as the Chairman of the ECG Board.

This is where we have the biggest problem on hand. It easily pushes the company of Tony Oteng Gyasi over the top and puts him in serious conflict situation. When issues concerning Tropical Cables come to the attention of the ECG board, what is Tony Oteng Gyasi who is the Board Chairman going to do?

This is a position Tony Oteng Gyasi should not have accepted. Very principled people will inform the President of the potential danger in accepting such a position and decline it.

I strongly believe that Tony Oteng Gyasi has not done himself any good by accepting the Board Chairmanship of the ECG. Whoever brought his name up for consideration may not have done due diligence by alerting the Presidency of this huge conflict of interest.

Therefore, in the interest of fairness and honesty, I will humbly urge Tony Oteng Gyasi to step down as Chairman of the ECG Board before this issue explodes into embarrassing situations.

nakuakoduah@yahoo.com