News:
August 8, 2018
The Vice Chairman of the Mines and Energy Committee of parliament, George Mireku Duker, is asking those calling for the exit of the Minister for Energy, Boakye Agyarko over the controversial renegotiated Ameri deal to hasten slowly.
According to Mr Duker who is the Member of Parliament for Tarkwa-Nsuaem, it is too early to call for the resignation of the Minister urging the need for careful consideration of the issue.
The MP who was speaking on an Accra base 3FM said many people are calling for the head of the Minister without understanding the issues whiles blaming the opposition National Democratic Congress, NDC.
“I believe it is too early. We should take our time in taking such decisions. If it is coming from the headquarters of NDC, I wouldn’t blame them; that is their duty, that is the essence of being in opposition and creating tensions in government,” Mr. Mireku said.
Many citizens and Civil Society organizations including the Africa Center for Energy Policy, the minority NDC, the president of IMANI Ghana, Franklin Cudjoe and a financial analyst, Joe Jackson have all called on the Energy Minister to resign.
Ameri Energy in a purported release claimed it had no knowledge of the said renegotiation deal which would have seen the original $510 million Ameri deal extended from its original five years to 15 years with the government committing over $700 million to it.
Mr. Agyarko has come under intense pressure to resign or be sacked for allegedly misleading and causing an “embarrassment” to President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo over the new deal which has widely been condemned.
The supposed amended power deal with a new company, Mytilineous, was expected to cost the country in excess of $1 billion.
By Christian Kpesese/ ghanamps.com