A lecturer in political marketing at the University of Education, Winneba, Dr Bernard Tutu-Boahene has criticised the decision to suspend the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Ghana Grid Company (GRIDCo), Ing. Mark Awuah Baah, following the recent control room fire at the Akosombo power generation centre, describing the move as difficult to justify.
Speaking on JoyNews’ AM Show on Tuesday, April 28, 2026, Dr Tutu-Boahene acknowledged that in management practice, leaders are often required to take responsibility when crises occur. However, he argued that the nature of the incident must be taken into account.
The facility, which supplies the bulk of Ghana’s electricity, has been at the centre of investigations after the fire incident raised concerns about operational safety and accountability.
“For every problem within an organisation, a leader may be asked to step aside, especially in cases involving financial impropriety. But this is a fire outbreak, something that could be a natural occurrence and beyond direct control,” he stated.
He questioned the basis for asking the CEO to step aside, insisting that the decision appears inconsistent given the circumstances.
“Can we say it is the fault of the CEO? I find it difficult to understand why he should step aside, particularly if he was not directly involved,” he said.
Dr Tutu-Boahene further expressed dissatisfaction with the explanation that the suspension is to allow for investigations to proceed without interference.
“We are told it is because of investigations, but that does not fully address the issue. If the CEO was not directly involved in the control room operations, then the justification becomes unclear,” he added.
He also raised concerns about the apparent lack of action against staff who were on duty at the control room when the fire occurred.
“What about the people who were working in the control room at the time? Have any of them been asked to step aside? We have not heard that,” he noted.
According to him, if accountability is to be pursued, it should extend to those directly responsible for operations at the time of the incident.
“If there are suspicions of wrongdoing, then those who were directly in charge of the control room should equally be subject to scrutiny,” he argued.
Dr Tutu-Boahene stressed the need for fairness and consistency in handling such incidents, cautioning against decisions that may appear selective or unsupported by clear evidence.
He maintained that while leadership responsibility is important, accountability measures must be guided by facts and a balanced assessment of responsibility.
Source: adomonline.com
