The former Board Chairman of the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) , Mr Alexander Afenyo Markins has responded to recent remarks by Dr. Charles Wereko-Brobbey, a former Chief Executive of the Volta River Authority (VRA), dismissing allegations that linked him to ECG’s financial losses in 2023 and early 2024.
Clarifying his tenure, the former ECG Chair stated that he assumed office on July 17, 2024, following his appointment by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo. His leadership spanned approximately six months, ending in January 2025. He described as factually incorrect any attempts to associate him with decisions or financial outcomes at ECG prior to his appointment.
During my short tenure, as ECG Board Chairman I spearheaded reforms focused on transparency, cost efficiency, and revenue protection. One of his first actions was to overhaul ECG’s procurement and contract management process. The previous system allowed vendors to deliver items to ports and submit Bills of Lading to ECG without proper verification, a practice he said exposed the company to serious financial risks. Under his leadership, ECG introduced a new procurement framework where payments were made only after confirmed delivery of items to ECG facilities.
He also directed management to intensify the Loss Reduction Programme initiated under the previous administration. This initiative targeted non-technical losses arising from obsolete, malfunctioning, or expired electricity meters and the lack of prepaid metering in many communities. His tenure focused on modernising ECG’s metering infrastructure to improve revenue collection and reduce waste.
The former Board Chair highlighted that his tenure coincided with increased payments to Independent Power Producers (IPPs), a move aimed at stabilising power supply and sustaining ECG’s obligations to suppliers. He also made it clear that his reform agenda did not involve any tariff increases or new levies, but rather emphasized efficient management and operational discipline.
He strongly opposed the recent imposition of a one-cedi Energy Sector Levy on petroleum products at the pump, arguing that ECG’s inefficiencies were structural, not financial. He also criticised the electricity tariff increases implemented under the current NDC administration, totaling 17.2% within a six-month period, as counterproductive in the absence of reforms to plug revenue leakages.
Internal reports presented to the Board during his tenure indicated that fewer than 30% of ECG consumers actually paid for electricity consumed. The rest of the losses, he noted, were due to inefficiencies, illegal connections, and outdated billing systems. He argued that addressing these systemic weaknesses is the only sustainable way to improve ECG’s financial health.
The former Chairman also acknowledged the efforts of his predecessors in initiating key reforms, particularly the digitisation of ECG’s revenue systems and early loss reduction strategies. He described his leadership as a continuation and enhancement of those efforts.
He concluded by emphasizing the need for national, non-partisan dialogue on structural reforms in the energy sector. He expressed disappointment in what he described as politically motivated distortions and called for a focus on factual, solution-oriented discourse that benefits the Ghanaian public.
source, Facebook wall of Mr. Alexander
