You are here: HomeOpinionsArticles2013 02 18Article 265199

Opinions of Monday, 18 February 2013

Columnist: Allotey, Henry Kpakpo

Ghana is gradually becoming an animal farm!

• Fuel prices have been increased. I don't agree with it though but it’s nonetheless been done. I expect the usual argument, discussions and fights to start. As is the custom, the communicators of the N.D.C will be expected to mount a vigorous defense of it while the opposition especially the N.P.P will stoutly seek to make a political gain out of it. The argument will follow the usual predictable trend. The N.D.C will cite the price of crude oil in the world market and other reasons why the state cannot subsidize fuel prices to justify the increase. The N.P.P will as usual cite the effect of the increase on poor Ghanaians and N.D.C's broken promises to support their opposition. All in all, we should expect a busy and heated week on our airwaves with some demonstrations and protest here and there. At the end of the day, the prices will stand and petrol will sell at almost 10 GHC per gallon!

I have some few questions though:

1. Why has the price of LPG been increased for 50%? does somebody somewhere wants us to go back to using charcoal or what? is Alex Mould and his rich directors trying to create a class society by making LPG the preserve of the rich and the middle class? Why is there a deliberate attempt to make LPG expensive and out of reach to the average Ghanaian? Did somebody not tell us LPG is a byproduct which is mostly useless? As an up and coming Accountant, i know a by-product is mostly useless that is sold for scrap and cannot be more expensive that the main product. It seems somebody wants to make LPG the main product!

2. Alex Mould claims government is still subsidizing fuel! Now this is quite unbelievable. I thought we were told if subsidies were removed, fuel prices will go up by 15-35%. If prices have been increased by 15-20%, where is the government still subsidizing fuel? Is this not a ruse by Alex Mould and his henchmen to come back in a year's time and still tell us the same story we are hearing today and give us another lousy excuse to increase the price of fuel?

3. Is the N.D.C seriously different from the N.P.P? i have had more than 50 calls this morning from N.P.P chaps and couldn't pick any of them. The N.D.C makes it harder for some of us to defend the party. This fuel price increase is unjustified, wicked and blatantly defeatist! Alex Mould and his rich officials will always rush to increase fuel prices because they don't buy them with their money.

We live in an incredible society where the rich have everything free while the poor man has to pay for everything! Shaking my head!