Member of the NDC Communication Team, Dr. Sam Ayeh, has taken a swipe at the Minority in Parliament and former Information Minister, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, accusing them of hypocrisy in their recently held press conference ON the GHC1 fuel levy.
Speaking on TV3’s New Day show, Dr. Ayeh expressed dismay over the press conference held by the Minority in Parliament, describing it as “empty and lacking a single modicum of principle.”
According to him, the former government, under which Mr. Oppong Nkrumah served, mismanaged funds allocated to the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG), and yet failed to be accountable.
“During their government, ECG received a budgetary allocation of 1.5 billion Ghana cedis, but they ended up spending 8 billion,” Dr. Ayeh claimed. “When that happened, he didn’t hold any press conference. Now, he’s drawing empty parallels between E-Levy and this new levy introduced by the current government.”
He questioned the relevance of the press conference, asking, “What exactly was the purpose of that press conference yesterday? Was it to inform Ghanaians or to continue their propaganda tour across lorry stations and taxi ranks?”
Dr. Ayeh further challenged the NPP to account for the proceeds from the controversial E-Levy implemented during their tenure. “Instead of holding that press conference, he should be telling us what they used the E-Levy for,” he said. “We were told by their MPs and ministers that E-Levy proceeds would be used to pay contractors, fix roads, and sustain Free SHS. Today, the Roads Ministry is saddled with 105 billion Ghana cedis in debt. So, what did they use the money for?”
Citing various government promises tied to the E-Levy, Dr. Ayeh referenced the former Majority Leader, Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, who had said the E-Levy was critical to fixing roads, and the Roads Minister’s statement that all contractors would be paid if the levy was passed.
“None of these promises materialized,” he lamented. “It’s the height of hypocrisy for anyone from that administration to now lecture Ghanaians on economic efficiency.”
On the issue of the new energy sector levy, Dr. Ayeh admitted that the current levy is unpopular but stressed its necessity due to the debts inherited by the NDC administration.
“I am not happy about this new levy. No Ghanaian is. But it is necessary because of where we find ourselves,” he stated. “We inherited an energy sector debt of 70 billion Ghana cedis. When we left office, we had reduced it to 10 billion.”
He also revealed that the current government has earmarked 23 billion Ghana cedis—about 32% of the total legacy debt—for payment within just four months.
“That’s progress. That’s accountability. That’s what we’re doing to clean up the mess,” he said. “You can’t destroy the sector and then turn around to act like you have the solutions.”
Dr. Ayeh ended his remarks by calling out what he described as “a paralysis of thought” among critics who argue that a liter of fuel at 11 Ghana cedis is worse than when it sold for 16 cedis under the NPP.
“Are we supposed to applaud people who are now roaming stations, pushing propaganda, when during their time fuel prices were higher and debt was deeper?” he asked.
The heated commentary comes amid ongoing public dissatisfaction over rising costs of living and renewed debate over the management of Ghana’s energy and revenue systems.
