Aside from going contrary to the NPA’s regulation, selective discounts by OMCs have been described as a potential threat to even development and national cohesion. This is according to former Minister for Power and MP, Dr. Kwabena Donkor.
It will be recalled that the Former Minister has petitioned the National Petroleum Authority (NPA) over the selective discounts they were running. These OMCs, particularly Star Oil and Goil, offered discounts to consumers at some selected fuel stations within their network.
This, Dr. Kwabena Donkor believes, is inconsistent with the NPA’s uniform pricing policy, which requires that the price of fuel of any OMC must be the same across all of its networks.
In an exclusive interview with The High Street Journal, Dr. Donkor clarified and emphasized that he is not opposed to fuel price discounts in principle. In fact, he stressed that he welcomes them, provided they benefit all consumers equally.
“If an OMC wants to discount, I have no problem with that. But my problem is with discounting at selected filling stations. If they discount across the whole network, I’m absolutely for it, whatever benefits the consumer,” he clarified.
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His concern, however, lies with selective discounting, where companies reduce prices at specific filling stations while maintaining higher prices elsewhere.
The Problem with Selectivity
Dr. Donkor argues that allowing profit-oriented entities to determine where discounts apply could unintentionally deepen regional and development inequality.
Fuel stations in high-traffic, commercially vibrant areas are more likely to receive discounts because volumes are higher and competition is intense. Meanwhile, stations in rural or less-developed regions, where volumes are lower, may not benefit.
For him, if this is allowed to fester, there is the risk that the least developed areas of this country will suffer,” he cautioned.
In practical terms, drivers in urban centres could enjoy lower fuel prices while motorists in remote communities continue paying more. Over time, such disparities can reinforce uneven development patterns.
He explained that, “when you create a situation where you give a commercial entity, a profit-driven entity, the opportunity to decide where he or she will discount, the probability is that the least developed areas of this country will suffer. Because the volumes are not there, and you compete on volumes.”
Nation-Building Beyond Economics and Profit
For Dr. Donkor, the issue transcends economics and pricing strategy. It touches on national cohesion.
Ghana, he notes, is still consolidating itself as a unified nation-state. The country is attempting to bring together diverse ethnicities and regions into a shared economic space. Policies, whether economic or commercial, must strengthen rather than fragment that unity.
Dr. Donkor says if certain regions consistently perceive that they are excluded from benefits available elsewhere, it risks breeding resentment and undermining trust in regulatory institutions.
“We must always remember that we are engaged in a process of nation-building. We are engaged in a situation where we are forging a single nation out of different ethnicities, out of different ethnic nation-states. And so national cohesion must always be at the top of policy,” the former legislator argued.
Regulation and Fair Competition
Dr. Donkor’s petition to the National Petroleum Authority was therefore not about stopping competition. Rather, it was about ensuring that competition operates fairly across the board and works for all citizens irrespective of location and ethnicity.
He argues that if discounts are permitted, they should apply uniformly across an OMC’s network, not selectively.
Uniform discounting, in his view, preserves consumer benefit while avoiding geographic discrimination. Selective discounting, by contrast, allows market forces alone to dictate outcomes in a way that may disadvantage already struggling communities.
“This was the basis of my petition to the regulatory authority MPA. As long as the discount is across the network, I have no issue. The issue is the selectivity of the discounts,” he emphasized.
The Bottomline
Fuel pricing affects transportation costs, food prices, and overall living expenses. Any imbalance can ripple through local economies.
Dr. Donkor acknowledges that OMCs are profit-oriented businesses. However, he insists that in a regulated sector as strategic as petroleum distribution, commercial freedom must be balanced with national development objectives.
Competition among OMCs, he insists, should not come at the expense of cohesion. His case is that discounts that benefit everyone strengthen consumer welfare. However, discounts that favour selected areas risk widening gaps between regions.
For a country still striving to ensure balanced development, he believes regulatory oversight must prioritise fairness, not just market efficiency.
