The Minister for Energy, John Peter Amewu says the destruction of a Transmission Tower of the Ghana Grid Company, GRIDCo, by some unscrupulous persons is barbaric and an act to plunge the Country into total darkness.
Mr. Amewu made these remarks when he went on a site inspection with officials of GRIDCO to check the extent of damage of the High tension pylons at the Company’s Head Office in Tema.
Transmission pylons near the Head office of Ghana Grid Company (GRIDCo), which is used for transmitting power from Karpower and AKSA to the National Grid, has been vandalised.
Addressing journalists after an inspection of the collapsed tower in Tema, Mr. Amewu who expressed dismay at the state of destruction said, aside investigations being conducted by the Police and National Security, an internal Committee has also been set up to complement the investigations into the incident.
Mr. Amewu described this act of vandalism on the Volta Smelter Transmission tower at the Ghana Grid Company Limited (GRIDCO) as a complete sabotage on the efforts of Government to supply uninterrupted power to Ghanaians.
He said the act is barbaric, uncivilized, unpatriotic and undemocratic, and needs to be condemned.
The Minister noted that some corrosive chemicals have been detected around most of the towers along the lines with the intension of destroying them in future.
“It baffles my mind how human beings can do this to our motherland, we can’t be subjecting our own country to this treason. We are Ghanaian, a country that believes in common purpose, common destiny.
“We are working hard just because we want to leave a Ghana that is better for everybody to take pride in, so I don’t expect us to be witnessing things of this nature”, The Minister said.
He cautioned persons behind this barbaric act, be it political party members, or persons who simply do not want the best for this country and for that matter the government to get ready to face the full rigors of the law for this unforgivable act.
According to him, the Police and National Security are investigating the act of lawlessness to ensure that the culprits are brought to book.
The Energy Minister assured Ghanaians that the technical team is working to ensure that the impact of this destruction on power supply is minimized.
Chief Executive Officer for GRIDCO, Jonathan Amoako-Baah said management will intensify security measures at the site to prevent recurrence of this barbaric acts.
It is suspected that some persons have hacked unto one of the transmission towers at the Ghana Grid Company enclave.
The 161-thousand volts network transmits power from the Tema Thermal Power, Karpower and AKSA to the Volta Sub-Station, then to the other parts of the Country.
The incident which occurred in the wee hours of today is likely to affect power supply to parts of Accra, Tema and upstream including Kumasi.
Also briefing Journalists at the site in Tema, the Director of Systems Operation at the Ghana Grid Company, Mark Awuah Baah said upon visiting the site to see the damage caused, they realized the destruction is severe and a deliberate attempt to vandalize it since the bolts and nuts have been cut off.
He stated that the case has been reported to the Police and hope investigations will begin in earnest to ensure that perpetrators are arrested.
Mr. Baah said although in the interim, the two affected lines have been isolated and power restored to the customers, the peak time between 4pm and 5pm to about 10pm will be a challenge.
He however, indicated that engineers are carrying out analysis to know the full impact on customers during the peak time.
Transmission pylons near the Head office of Ghana Grid Company (GRIDCo), which is used for transmitting power from Karpower and AKSA to the national grid, has been hacked down.
