An Economist and onetime Chairman of the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC), Kwame Pianim, has commended the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC) for its courageous initiative in imposing fines on the Board members of the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) for overseeing power outages without prior notification to consumers.

According to him, it serves as a timely reminder to all directors of public and state-owned institutions that they bear responsibilities for which they will be held accountable.

Speaking on JoyNews’ Newsfile on Saturday, Mr Pianim stated that every board has an audit and compliance committee, which must ensure management's compliance with all agreements and regulations.

He noted that when the government established the Cash Waterfall Mechanism, it required ECG to prioritise payment for raw materials before self-compensation, stating that directors should have verified management's compliance with the policy.

“And if they say they didn’t know, then it means the audit and compliance committee was not functioning properly and I’m happy that this is a timely reminder to directors that they have legal and judicial responsibility.

“I’m hoping that the whole country will support the PURC just as they should support the Auditor General when he comes with his findings. 

“As we are also supporting the PURC, they should also know that one day, the consumer is going to take them to court for not regulating ECG properly,”he said.

His comment comes after the PURC imposed a fine on the Managing Director, Samuel Dubik Mahama and members of the ECG board who served between January 1 and March 18, 2024. 

Read also: ECG board members to cough up GHS5.868m in PURC fine over dumsor

The fine, totaling GH₵5,868,000 comes from the board's violation of Regulation 39 of L.I. 2413, which mandates notifying consumers beforehand of any power interruptions. 

The Economist stressed that directors of the ECG must know that they need responsible and competent professionals.