Ghana has requested that the ECOWAS Community Court of Justice (CCJ) dismiss a suit attempting to suspend the execution of the Gold Royalties Monetisation Transaction arrangement, colloquially known as the Agyapa Deal.
The complaint brought by three non-governmental organizations (NGOs) – Transparency International, Ghana Integrity Initiative (GII), and Ghana Anti-Corruption Coalition (GACC) – was “meritless, frivolous, and a waste of the court’s time,” according to Ghana.
On March 31, 2022, Dorothy Afriyie Ansah, a Chief State Attorney from the Attorney-General’s office, informed the CCJ that the complaint, based on a corruption risk assessment by a former Special Prosecutor, Martin Amidu, lacked merit.
“Page 64 of the Special Prosecutor’s report states that the assessment does not constitute formal investigations. So, it is suspected corruption and not that something had occurred,” she argued.
Mrs. Ansah, who was submitting Ghana’s defense before the CCJ, which is now sitting in Accra, said the petitioners misunderstood the entire Agyapa deal.
She stated that the Agyapa agreement aimed to increase the advantages Ghana gained from gold by monetizing royalties to assist the government in raising the necessary funds for development.
It was her contention that the Agyapa deal was neither intended to waste the country’s gold riches, as claimed by the applicants nor was it intended to benefit some “politically exposed persons,” as represented by the applicants.
Suit
The three NGOs took Ghana to the CCJ, claiming that the Agyapa deal was corrupt, dominated by “politically exposed people,” and violated Ghanaians’ rights to permanent sovereignty over the country’s natural resources, as guaranteed by the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights.
As a result, they want the CCJ to force Ghana to stop the Agyapa deal and hold adequate consultations with Ghanaians in order to reach a solution that will be in the public interest.
The applicants also want the court to require Ghana to examine any alleged acts of corruption related to the contract, “and ensure that any alleged perpetrators are brought to justice.” as well as hold appropriate consultations.
According to him, Mr Amidu’s corruption risk assessment was a strong sign that the contract was infected with corruption and would damage Ghanaians’ rights to their natural resources.
His point was that if the Ghanaian government had properly consulted Ghanaians, it would not have established a special purpose vehicle (SPV) outside of Ghana to oversee the Agyapa deal.
“If the Agyapa deal is for the people of Ghana, it must go through proper consultations. Let the people of Ghana, who are the supposed beneficiaries have a say. Consult the people and perform impact assessment,” he said.
The matter would be decided by the court, presided over by Justice Edward Amoako Asante, on July 13, this year.
Background
The Minerals Income Investment Fund Act, 2018 (MIIF Act 978) was established by Parliament with the primary goal of maximizing the country’s mineral resources for the benefit of Ghanaians while guaranteeing that obtaining royalties from gold mining firms remained sustainable.
The law was changed to allow it to form subsidiaries and utilize it as a special purpose vehicle (SPV) to do international commerce.
The MIIF’s primary subsidiary and holding company, Agyapa Royalties Investment Ltd, will be listed on the LSE, while its subsidiary, ARG Royalties Ltd, will be listed on the Ghana Stock Exchange (GSE), both through initial public offerings (IPOs).
The company will be in charge of handling 75.6 percent of the country’s royalty inflows from the 12 gold mining companies that are now operating in Ghana, with four more sets to join them.
This will allow the nation to raise around $1 billion to finance mining concessions in Ghana and throughout Africa.
In November 2020, President Akufo-Addo directed the Minister of Finance to re-submit the agreements supporting the Agyapa deal to Parliament, re-starting the approval process.
This was in response to a corruption risk assessment provided to the President by Mr. Amidu.
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SOURCE: GRAPHICONLINE
