The utilities hike announced by the Public Utilities Regulatory Commission (PURC) has sparked fierce backlash in the country.
Many Ghanaians have registered their disapproval of the upward adjustment in the average end-user tariff for electricity by 14.75%, and a 4.02% increase in water tariffs.
Reacting to the development, a private legal practitioner, Austin Kwabena Brako-Powers, has described the announcement as “purely insensitive and gravely unfair to the suffering Ghanaians.”
He said it is improper for the government to increase utility tariffs at a time parts of the country are experiencing power crisis localised as dumsor coupled with inconsistent water supply.
“Why is it easy for Ghanaian governments to transfer costs to the consumer when they know the services rendered are not of the best quality any sane person would expect from a service provider?” he quizzed.
The increment precedes PURC’s quarterly tariff review process for the first and second quarters of 2025.
According to the Commission, the adjustments took into consideration factors such as the dollar and cedi exchange rate, inflation projections, and fuel costs, among others.
But Mr Brako-Powers has blamed the PURC for the country’s utilities problems, including the dumsor currently ongoing.
“All that PURC ever cares about is needless and unnecessary utilities increment without bothering itself with the quality of service being provided to consumers,” he said.
The private legal practitioner has appealed to President Mahama to prevail over the PURC to reverse the hikes.
“This is not the right time to make the kind of price adjustments the PURC announced since we’re living with dumsor and inconsistent water supply since January,” Mr Brako-Powers wrote on Facebook.
Source: 3news.com