The National Democratic Congress (NDC) Minority in Parliament has expressed concerns about the government's decision to merge the Bui Power Authority (BPA) and the Volta River Authority (VRA).

According to the Minority, the move is an abuse of legislative power and an attempt at what they describe as "state capture."

The NDC's concerns follow the government's plan to merge the hydroelectric dams into a single entity to be called the Ghana Hydro Authority which was outlined in a bill currently before Parliament.

During an emergency Parliamentary sitting today, the first Deputy Minority Whip, Ahmed Ibrahim raised concerns over the matter during the bill's first reading.

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According to him, there are serious issues among traditional leaders in his constituency about how this merger will affect the Bui Power Authority (BPA).

Both the NPP and the NDC have agreed that the size of the government's bureaucracy is too large and if state institutions can be merged to reduce the burden of the state, they must do so.

Speaking on Top Story on Tuesday, September 3, the first Deputy Minority Whip in Parliament, Ibrahim Ahmed, strongly opposed the government's decision to merge these two state institutions.

He argued that excessive centralisation of power can lead to bad governance, and warned that merging the BPA and VRA could result in a "high level of bureaucracy."

He explained, "Any document that you send to Bui, unless they have to bring it to Akosombo for the CEO to approve before approval will be given.

“But now that both are separated, there is a quick decision taken, there is efficiency in management, the level of responding to issues and matters concerning Bui Power Authority is quick and therefore we are saying that we are vehemently opposed to the merger."

Mr Ahmed further noted that, in terms of efficiency, the BPA is currently performing better than Akosombo.

"Bui started with 400 megawatts of hydro, now they have added about 100 megawatts of solar and they have produced the biggest solar farm in the whole of West Africa. They have taken quick decisions and they are now trying to attract the private sector in the kind of investments they are doing,” he said.

The first Deputy Minority Whip said that BPA should be protected and warned of any merger noting that "the mess in VRA which made it impossible for us to go and grant a loan from the books of VRA will continue."