Sunyani (B/A), July 29, GNA - The Brong-Ahafo Regional branch of the Industrial and Commercial Workers Union (ICU) on Thursday joined the nationwide demonstration of the Union to register its protest against the increases in utility tariffs.

The Public Utility Regulatory Commission (PURC) this year announced the new tariffs of 89 percent for electricity and 36 percent for water.

The demonstrators numbering more than 50 wore red arm and head bands and paraded through some principal streets of Sunyani and later presented a petition to the Regional Coordinating Council (RCC).

The petition was signed by Mr Robert Ben Gyan and Mr Albert Amoah Frimpong, Regional Officer and Regional Chairman of the ICU respectively and was received by Mr Eric Opoku, Deputy Regional Minister, on behalf of the council.

It was copied to the Chairman, PURC, Accra, Minister of Energy, and the union's National Executive Council, Acting Deputy General Secretary, administration, Acting Deputy General Secretary, operations, and regional chairmen and officers.

In the petition, the union called on the RCC to as a matter of urgency, impress on the PURC to suspend the new utility tariffs and involve the union in the stakeholders' negotiations for affordable increases.

The petition noted that the cumulative effect of the increases was that the manufacturing sectors like textiles and garments, steel and metal and food and beverages would encounter operational difficulties.

"However, the real increases ranged from 198 percent to 235 percent in the manufacturing sector," it stated.

"The manufacturing industries were considering how to handle the situation, with some contemplating passing on the increases to consumers of their products which would definitely lead to increased inflation and thereby make life unbearable for Ghanaians," it said.

The petition stated that investigations by the ICU had revealed that in the steel industry alone, about 2,500 workers would be affected while another 3,000 would be indirectly struck because they would be out of employment.

"The 3,000 are mainly suppliers of steel scrap to the steel companies, notably Ferro Fabric limited, Tema Steel Works and Sethi Brothers. This means that in the steel and metal industries alone, over 5,500 workers are going to lose their jobs," it added.

It said the recently revived Volta Star Textiles Limited shutdown a few weeks ago because the company could not settle an outstanding electricity bill of GH¢ 490,000 which indicated that its financial situation would worsen if the current increases in tariffs remained unchanged.

The petition indicated that the ICU was not against the increase but rather it was much concerned about the levels of the increases which the union noted did not commensurate with salary levels in the country.