NEDCo Staff Accuse MD Of Non-Performance; Demand His Removal

The staff of the Northern Electricity Distribution Company (NEDCo) are demanding the removal of the Managing Director, Osmani Aludiba Ayuba after accusing him of non-performance. In a petition presented to the Board of Directors of the company, the staff cited among other things the “worse financial performance of NEDCo, lack of a clear strategy for the company, exorbitant sole source procurement of point-of-sale devices and worsening distribution losses,” to back their demand.

They added that the company has retrogressed since Mr Ayuba took over as the managing director some three years ago. “The net financial loss of NEDCo instead of improving has deteriorated from GH¢315.398 million in 2018 to GH¢392.406 million as of September 2022. The estimated net loss for 2022 is over GH¢400 million. This means NEDCo’s performance deteriorated by at least 24% over the period,” the staff said in the petition.

They add that the “cash flow situation of NEDCo is worsening every day. As a result, NEDCo is unable to pay most of its suppliers and contractors. As of September 2022, NEDCo was indebted to its major suppliers to the tune of GH¢1.8 billion. NEDCo is struggling to raise Letters of Credit to procure critical materials and equipment required for its operation under the watch of Mr Ayuba.”

As part of steps to press home their demand, the staff from Wednesday, February 1, have hoisted red banners across all the operational areas and service centres in NEDCo. According to the petition, the distribution loss alone within the Tamale metropolis is estimated at 12 million cedis of revenue loss each month. They also alleged that the managing director and his team of leaders have spent over $40 million in the last three years on needless projects.

“A contract of GH¢57.68 million awarded to Meinergy Technology to supply and install 40,300 Smart Split Prepaid Meters in Tamale is not yielding the desired results for NEDCo. Out of the over 24,000 Longi Meters deployed so far, 60% of the meters do not have the new PURC-approved tariff effective September 1, 2022, primarily due to integration issues with the Hexing Billing System.

“For almost 5 months, NEDCo management is unable to ensure that the affected customers pay the right tariff for the power consumed. It is estimated that NEDCo has lost GH¢2.2 million in revenue over the 5-month period.”

Adding that, “about 11,000 of the meters were also given free of charge to customers without them paying the required new service fees. This has occasioned an estimated loss of GH¢7.7 million in revenue”. Meanwhile, the Board of Directors has appealed to the aggrieved staff to be patient and allow them to resolve their grievances.