Parliament divided on severity of fuel situation

The inconsistent fuel supply in Accra and some parts of the country was the subject of contention in Parliament on Tuesday as the minority and majority could not find common grounds on the extent of its severity. Mr Kan Dapaah, Minority spokesman on Mines and Energy, spearheaded the attack with a statement that called for the resignation of the Minister for lying to Ghanaians about the capacity and efficiency of the oil industry.

"We were assured in this house by the Deputy Minister that, by the government's deregulation policy, a formula had been put in place, which would allow the refinery full cost recovery and additionally provide for various duties and levies to the government equivalent to about 32 per cent of the ex-pump price."

He said it was a surprise that the current shortage had been attributed in part to the fact that the Tema Oil Refinery was in a huge debt because of a long history of cost under-recovery.

"What is driving ex-refinery prices is not so much the cost of crude oil. After all, the last time we increased the ex-pump price it was based on a traded price of crude oil of 32 dollars per barrel.

"Indeed, what is driving the cost is rather the falling cedi which is the direct result of the failed economic policies of the government.

"Unless Ghanaians are told the truth, people will not support the difficult measures which need to be taken to arrest the situation."

Minority leader J.H. Mensah described the situation as a "national crisis that should not be trivialised".

Most Majority members criticised the Minority for trying to score political points out of the situation and asked that all should help contain the problem since it is a global one.

Dr. John Abu, Minister of Mines and Energy, attributed the "perceived" fuel shortage to panic buying, smuggling and hoarding. He said petrol and diesel have been over-delivered in the past week and promised that government would not let the situation go out of control.

The minister quoted Ghana's ex-pump petroleum prices as the lowest in her immediate environment. "In Ghana, we sell petrol for .98 cents a litre while it is sold in Togo for 2.35 dollars a litre, 3.27 dollars per litre in Cote d'Ivoire and 2.57 dollars per litre in Burkina Faso