Mine workers to protest at Jubilee House on Sept. 16, against FGR Bogoso-Prestea Mine lease
The Ghana Mine Workers Union has served notice it will on Monday September 16, 2024 picket the Jubilee House to present a petition to President Akufo-Addo on the happenings at Future Global Resources (FGR) Bogoso-Prestea Mine.
According to the union, it will escalate the picketing to Parliament and the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources until the mining lease of FGR is terminated to allow other prospective investors take part in the ownership process of the mine.
“On Tuesday 17th September 2024 at 10am, we shall converge on the precincts of Parliament to present our petition to the Speaker of Parliament. From Parliament, we shall process back to the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources to continue picketing up to the end of the day”.
Addressing journalists, General Secretary of the union, Abdul-Moomin Gbana accused management of FGR for not running the firm efficiently.
“The claims by FGR that the Bogoso-Prestea Mines are opened for business is factually inaccurate but a deliberate ploy to hang onto the mineral rights by any means possible. Shockingly, since the expiration of the notice and their notorious refusal to comply with the conditions contained in the Conditional Approval, the Company has resorted to the use of brute force by the military, intimidating and victimizing our members”.
To this end, the Union has resolved to petition the President at the Seat of Government to bring to his attention developments at Future Global Resources Bogoso-Prestea Mine.
“Consequently, beginning Monday 16th September 2024 at 9am, the Union and all its members across the mining industry of Ghana shall converge in front of the Jubilee House to present a petition to the President. From the Jubilee House, we shall process to the premises of the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources where we shall congregate and picket up to the end of the day”.
Meanwhile, the Ghana Mine Workers’ Union and over 400 of our members embarked on demonstrations/picketing on April 25 & 26, 2024 right here in Accra to draw the attention of government to happenings at Future Global Resources Bogoso-Prestea Mine and to demand the termination/cancellation of mining leases in order to give way to potential investors to run the mine.
Background
In September 2020, Golden Star Resources (GSR), owners of the Wassa and Bogoso/Prestea Mines, sold 90 percent of its interest in the Bogoso-Prestea Mine to Future Global Resources (FGR).
The decision which received Government support at the time, was expected to bring fresh impetus, focus, and investment capacity to the Bogoso-Prestea mine.
Rather strangely, unlike previous deals involving companies like Newmont, Gold Fields, and AngloGold Ashanti which made palpable investment declarations and commitments to inject additional capital as a significant part of their transactions, this critical capital requirement was completely missing in the FGR transaction.
Indeed, before the completion of the FGR transaction, several key red flags and concerns were highlighted by several stakeholders including the Union which touched on not just the seeming lack of experience of FGR which was curiously incorporated only in 2019 and therefore was only barely a year old in mining and extraction at the time, very serious concerns were also raised about the financial capacity of FGR to operate the Bogoso-Prestea Mine.
Regrettably, even though the Sector Minister at the time was adequately seized with these red flags and concerns raised by these key stakeholders about the transaction and more specifically the financial capacity of FGR to operate the Bogoso-Prestea Mine if the transaction was approved without a demonstrable investment plan submitted by FGR to Government, he allegedly chose to ignore every call and went ahead to approve the sale on 30th September 2020.