- Author, Komla Adom
- Role, Senior Journalist, BBC News Pidgin
- Reporting from Accra
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Demonstrators for Ghana don call for di immediate end to di power crisis wey dey face di kontri for several months now.
Di outages wey dem call #Dumsor dey affect pipo across di kontri and dia businesses – even students.
Actress Yvonne Nelson wey lead similar protest against power crisis for 2015 don lead dis one too, say make di goment fix di mata.
Despite say she no dey feel well, di actress still waka for street wey im say “we no dey deserve di kind governance.”
Di protesters wey dey wear black and red shirt tok say “enough be enough”.
For di pipo wey organize di 7-hour vigil, dis na strong signal to di energy minister and di president say pipo don taya wit di tori about di power crisis.
Di protesters don carry placards wey dem write for top, “Ghana dey deserve beta, fix di #Dumsor”, “#Dumsor dey kill our dreams”, “#Dumsor dey kill businesses, make una fix am, Nana”, “we no get moni to buy generator, fix #Dumsor”, “no more darkness, no more excuses”, “no light, no progress” among odas.
For Yvonne, one viral video from one public hospital wia light don go off for labour and admission ward, wey mothers and dia new babies dey sweat for di heat, na wetin trigger am to begin to mobilize pipo for social media for di protest.
“Dat video don break me, wey I tink to myself, I fit dey inside dat condition one day, wetin i go do? Dat be why we do dis vigil make goment fix di problem,” Yvonne tok.
For di 2015 #DumsorMustStop demo wey im organize, plenti celebrities and public figures don join.
But di saturday 9 June vigil, many of those celebrities neva show up wey dem neva support for social media.
Na only to or three including actor and comedian DKB and actor and politician John Dumelo wey show up as di faces wey attend di 2015 vigil.
Yvonne say im no shock say most of dos celebrities neva show up.
“I don send most of di celebrities invite – di ones wey attend di 2015 demo, but some neva reply my messages wey odas send strange and surprising responses, so dat be wetin happun,” Yvonne tok journalists wey cover di vigil.
Im add say im no go sit down make tins scatter las las bifor im go begin dey tok about am.
Anoda convenor for di vigil, Henry Osei Akoto tok say di protest na say make “di president carry our light give us – wey di arrogance of di energy minister Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh gatz to stop.”
Ghana according to im, dey need only 750 megawatts of power, but di goment no fit to provide.
“All we dey say we need our light, if you no take our light give we, we neva go make you sleep,” Henry Osei Akoto summarize.
Oda pipo including students wey join di protest say tins don dey become worse.
“We no fit to learn, even wen we gatz test and exam to write, we no fit to learn, wia sometimes di light don dey go off inside di exam hall,” one student for di University of Ghana tok BBC News pidgin.
Some cold store operators and metal smiths all don complain say dia business dey suffer too much – na so goment gatz to fix di problem instead say dem go tell lies about am.
Di convenors dey submit formal letter wey contain dia issues to di president wey dem expect say tins go change soon odawise dem go take further action to put pressure on goment to fix #Dumsor.
For at least di past three to four months, pipo dia lights always dey go off without prior notice, wey dis dey affect dem and dia businesses.
Some pipo complain about di fact say dia appliances for house don spoil as a result of di power outages wey odas don lose dia businesses.
But goment insist say wetin dey happun neva be power crisis – na small wahala wit some of di transformers.
Sabi pipo tok say wetin di goment tok no be true.
Na so president Akufo-Addo in April dis year, order say make Ghana suspend di export of electricity to neighbouring kontris.
For many decades, Ghana don dey supply electricity to Togo, Benin and Burkina Faso.
Oga of di energy committee for parliament, Samuel Atta Akyea don tok say di president give di order “in di interest of di Ghanaian pipo.”
Oga Atta Akyea tok say dis decision fit get consequences but di priority be di Ghanaian pipo.
Wia dis foto come from, GETTY
Impact of di power crisis for di kontri
Since den, citizens dey call for load shedding timetable so dem go fit to plan dia life and dia business but di goment say im neva go provide any timetable.
Some areas fit dey inside darkness for days and nights.
Pipo for Accra, Kumasi, Koforidua, Tamale, Takoradi, Ho and oda places dey suffer di power outages.
But energy minister, Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh tok say di electricity company neva go release timetable for di pipo sake of e neva be necessary.
Im tok journalists for one event say “pipo who dey ask for power rationing timetable dey wish bad for di kontri.”