By Amara Thoronka
Alhaji Kanja Sesay, the man who had been in charge of electricity as Minister of Energy in the last six years, on Friday 25th April 2024 tendered his resignation to President Julius Maada Bio.
To avoid vacuum in Mr. Kanja’s erstwhile capacity, His Excellency the President has assumed the office of the minister of energy, assisted by the two deputy ministers of the ministry.
“The general public is hereby informed that, with immediate effect, the Ministry of Energy will be under the direct ministerial supervision of His Excellency the President. He will be assisted by Dr. Eldred Tunde Taylor, Deputy Minister (1) and Edmond Nonie, Deputy Minister (2),” says a public notice from the Office of the President, signed by Dr. Julius F. Sandy, the Secretary to the President.
Though the President is constitutionally authorized to serve in any ministerial capacity, there are mixed reactions to him serving in the energy ministry. While some see it as the best decision at a time the nation is challenged with electricity, others are of the opinion that the President is already overwhelmed as President of Sierra Leone who is also serving as Minister of Defence, and as such, should appoint someone else as energy minister.
Considered as one of the performing ministers in the Bio administration, Kanja spearheaded several energy development projects which either improved energy supply in some parts of the country or introduced electricity for the very first time in certain parts of the nation.
Recently, Kanja and his Energy Ministry came under intense public bashing due to sustained blackout in the capital, Freetown. Though the cause of the blackout was linked to arrears owed by the government to independent power providers, the leadership of the then Energy Minister was uncompromisingly expected by the public to provide the needed stewardship to address the issue as the situation became unbearable for offices, private businesses and almost everyone due to the indispensability of energy in facilitating activities in every sector.
However, government, through the Ministry of Finance, has paid a total sum of Eighteen Million Five Hundred Thousand United States Dollard (US$18.5m) to two independent power suppliers: Karpowership and TRANSCO-CLSG to address the situation.
A press release from the Ministry of Finance, dated 26th April 2024, stated that the Ministry of Finance, in collaboration with the Ministry of Energy and the Electricity Distribution and Supply Authority (EDSA) engaged the management of Karpowership to resolve the current energy challenge in Freetown on Tuesday, 26th April, 2024.
“Following these negotiations, the Ministry of Finance has paid US$ 17m to Karpowership to reduce outstanding obligations. In addition, the Government has also transferred US$ 1.5m to TRANSCO-CLSG to ensure continued power supply from Cote D’Ivoire,” the press release disclosed.
The release noted that the Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Energy and EDSA will further engage with the said independent power producers to renegotiate the current contracts to ensure a sustainable and reliable energy supply.
Finance Ministry assured that it will “deepen engagements with the Ministry of Energy and EDSA to roll out reforms that will ensure the financial viability of the energy sector”.
Karpowership has in a press release dated 26th April 2024 confirmed its engagement with government and disbursement made therein.
“We are pleased to confirm that the power supply at full capacity to Sierra Leone has been restored following a brief period of low production. We are grateful for the government’s great efforts and continuous communication with us to resolve the full payments and supply chain problems which have allowed us to restart operations swiftly and continue providing the people of Sierra Leone with reliable and uninterrupted electricity,” the management of Karpowership explained in the press release.
Copyright –Published in print in Expo Times Newspaper on Friday, April 29TH, 2024 (ExpoTimes News – Expo Media Group (expomediasl.com)
