The Member of Parliament for Oforikrom, Michael Kwasi Aidoo, has criticised the directive ordering the Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Grid Company Limited (GRIDCo), Ing. Mark Awuah Baah, to step aside following the recent fire incident at the Akosombo Power Control Centre.

Mr Aidoo, who also serves on Parliament’s Select Committee on Energy, described the move as a “smokescreen” and argued that it would not address the underlying challenges in Ghana’s power sector.

His comments follow an announcement by the Minister for Government Communications, Felix Kwakye Ofosu, indicating that the Energy Minister had directed the GRIDCo Chief Executive to step aside after last week’s fire outbreak, which triggered widespread power disruptions across parts of the country.

The directive also comes amid reports that some senior managers of the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) in the Ashanti Region have been transferred.

Speaking in an interview with Barima Kofi Dawson-Akokoa on Kro Yi Mu Nsem on Monday, April 27, Mr Aidoo questioned the effectiveness of the decision, suggesting it was intended to shift attention away from deeper issues affecting the sector.

“I see the sacking of the GRIDCo CEO as a smokescreen because an issue has come up, so we need to use someone as a scapegoat. In fact, I am told there is going to be a reshuffling of ECG leadership in Kumasi, and this will not solve the problem,” he stated.

He urged the government to focus on sustainable solutions rather than removing or transferring engineers responsible for maintaining the national grid.

Mr Aidoo also cautioned against the politicisation of the energy sector, warning that dismissing technical personnel based on perceived political affiliations could undermine operational efficiency.

“Should the power outages persist following this action, will it necessitate further reshuffling?” he questioned.

“There is a pressing issue that requires resolution. We must desist from dismissing technical personnel based on alleged political affiliations and suspicions of sabotage. We shouldn’t politicise our technical people working in the power sector,” he added.

The lawmaker attributed the recent intermittent power outages—commonly referred to as “dumsor”—to what he described as negligence, inadequate planning and insufficient stakeholder engagement in transformer installation projects.

He further argued that significant investments were made in transformer installations under the previous administration, suggesting that current challenges may be linked to gaps in maintenance and policy continuity.

“ECG advises on how to fix and upgrade transformers. Based on that advice, former MD Dubik Mahama procured these transformers and other ECG equipment. So the NDC government should have carried out this maintenance last year to prevent the power crisis, but they failed to do so and instead accused Samuel Dubik Mahama of over-procurement,” he said.

“I feel that government negligence, poor planning, and lack of engagement with experts led us into this energy crisis,” Mr Aidoo stated.