Gabby Asare Otchere-Darko
Attempts by government agents, appointees, and apparatchiks to rehash the widely condemned Agyapa Royalties deal with the ruling from the ECOWAS Court on the transaction, has been met with fierce fire from a member of the Civil Society Organization (CSO) who has strongly opposed the arrangement to collateralize the country’s mineral revenue.
Benjamin Kwabena Boakye, the Executive Director of the Africa Centre for Energy Policy (ACEP) on Wednesday night burst the bubbles of Gabby Otchere-Darko, President Nana Akufo-Addo’s powerful cousin, when he essentially told him to stop celebrating the ECOWAS Court verdict, as it is not a true reflection of the story behind Agyapa Royalties deal.
According to Mr. Boakye, the deal was going to short-change the country through the sale of as much as 49 percent of shares.
Ekow Essuman, a presidential staffer who doubles as a lawyer for the President and a member of the Minerals Income Investment Fund (MIIF) created to manage Agyapa also got his share of the flak in a ten-point response from the ACEP boss, who had earlier told Gabby “it’s not every CSO against Agyapa that was in court”.
Gabby, who the Finance Minister, Ken Ofori-Atta, another cousin of the President used to plot the transaction which experts maintain will deny the country a direct access to proceeds from the sale of its gold and other minerals, had taken to Twitter questioning “why Transparency International, Ghana Integrity Initiative and the CSOs who went to an international court over Agyapa, have been quiet since July after their case was dismissed on all fronts”.
Gabby also sought to reply to Martin Amidu’s description of the Agyapa deal as a corrupt scheme, there was no corruption involved as far as the Agyapa deal was concerned.
The ex-Special Prosecutor had described the President as “the mother serpent of corruption” in a report on the deal and resigned thereafter.
Ken Ofori-Atta’s private company, Databank, was involved in the transaction, while Gabby had also used his private law firm Africa Legal Associates in the deal, including deciding the name of the company. The original name of the company was Asaase Royalties but had to be changed to Agyapa Royalties because it coincided with the name of Gabby’s radio station Asaase FM.
Agyapa which was registered in a tax-free haven of Jersey, a British Virgin Island with directors whose names they refused to name aside Kofi Bosompem Osafo-Maafo, son of the Senior Minister, Yaw Osafo-Marfo, as CEO at a time he was still serving as the Deputy Director General of Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT).
An investment company in South Africa, engaged by the government in the transaction was also found to be partner of the Databank. It remains a mystery to date how much the Akufo-Addo government pumped into the botched transaction.
Mr Boakye, replied Gabby saying, “The court would not know that the same lawyers that cooked the MIIF Act were the lawyers behind Agyapa” adding that “Parliament that passed the MIIF act could not anticipate the trickery in the eventual sale of 49% of royalty”.
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The ACEP boss’ nine-point reply to Gabby said;
1. It’s not every CSO against Agyapa that was in court.
2. The court would not know that the same lawyers that cooked the MIIF Act were the lawyers behind Agyapa.
3. Parliament that passed the MIIF act could not anticipate the trickery in the eventual sale of 49% of royalty
4. You were selling 49% of gold royalties forever, valued at $500m.
5. Since the aborted efforts, Ghana has made more than $500m for the share you were selling forever.
6. There are about 5 pipeline projects that would’ve been part of the transaction to benefit the investors.
7. The pipeline project will generate about $200m annually. It would have been shared with the investors.
8. You committed to locking the royalty regime at 5%, selling the sovereignty of Ghana to regulate its fiscal take in the future,
9. CSOs doubt that these risks were not known.
Gabby, had jumped on Twitter on August 15 to write “I wonder why Transparency International, Ghana Integrity Initiative, and the CSOs who went to an international court over Agyapa have been quiet since July after their case was dismissed on all fronts. But, I thank them for that move. It is good for our democracy.
And, I will urge you all to read the decision of the ECOWAS court. Agyapa, a very legitimate, even if controversial, move by govt to expand the use of its gold revenues, had no corruption about it. “Zero!
You may not like it but to say, as they did, that a group of related persons were stealing Ghana’s gold was really sad and low. We the lawyers who worked on it were excited about the innovativeness of the whole MIIF institution which Parliament created and the things it was set up to do, including Agyapa.
“We were never motivated by even our fees. How floating on the London Stock Exchange 49% of an entity 100% owned by Ghana could be described as stealing is indeed sad and baffling. I have not loved Ghana less since my cousin became president.
“What some of us try to do is to go out of our way to help. Assist when we can. Occasionally it may get one into controversy and those who want to spin and blame one when they rather screw up may easier be believed than one. But that is the price…
“Soon, Jan 7, 2025, Nana’s term will be over, and another Gabby may emerge. I can’t wait, frankly! I can only wish him or her (the next Gabby) the best of luck! Whoever that may be, please just let your integrity guide you. Stay firm and do what you see to be right for God and country. Don’t let the propaganda get you down.
With the bashing Gabby was getting after Ben Boakye’s reply, Kow Essuman, also jumped into the fray, saying “Since the full judgment of the ECOWAS Court became public, I have read posts from certain persons that led the charge in misleading people about the Agyapa Transaction because of their basic lack of understanding of the transaction.
“These so-called experts chose not to go to court but were patiently waiting for the ECOWAS Court to make a finding against Ghana so that they would jump up and down in the media space saying they were right in their strong opposition to the transaction.
“Thankfully, but sadly for them, the ECOWAS Court delivered a reasoned and objective judgment on the matter.
Benjamin Boakye, quickly dealt with him too saying “Wow! I haven’t heard you make a scintilla technical argument about Agyapa, the entire machinery that sought to sell 49% of our gold royalties, from producing and pipeline projects, has evaded technical debate on the matter. The channel is still open if you have capacity”.
He told Mr Essuman “2. You sit on the board of MIIF, technically a beneficiary of Agyapa. Take off that hat for a sec and explain to your readers what you wanted to achieve with the transaction. It’s not enough to say you mean well. Anybody can say that – a very elusive approach.
3. I can pay for live TV for you to tell Ghana at least how you understand the transaction-real questions.
4. It’ll be helpful to compare your purpose with current context after the people pushed against it. You value the royalties @ $1b forever. Ghana made over $1b in 3yrs
5. This post-show that you either didn’t read any technical analysis put out by CSOs or you feigned ignorance of counter-arguments to advance benefits other than the interest of the state. The best you do is to expose the intellectual flaws in our arguments. None so far- sad.
6 “What do you say to the parliamentarians who turn around after approving the transaction? You made it difficult to understand the basics of the transaction, just as you doing here. At least a basic understanding of how the mining industry works will do for such a massive deal.
7. None of our analyses focused on human rights. Don’t expect everybody in a human rights Court. Some would have chosen to go to the criminal court if Martin Amidu had progressed with his investigations. So, respect those doing technical stuff if you have no technical rebuttal.
8. Do you remember how the transaction was suspended? The president asked for consultation/ public engagement. Was that an endorsement of your process for the transaction, or do you think the president lacked a “basic understanding” of your process?
9. How disrespectful, after the president asked for engagement, you organised Legon fresh students as your stakeholder for a forum. What are you afraid of? When a policy’s intent is to advance the interest of the people you can fear debate.
10. You must overcome the heightened relevance with the honour of serving the people of Ghana. Stay blessed.
The government created the MIIF, saying it “is a sovereign minerals fund mandated by the Minerals Income Investment Fund Act, 978 (as amended) to maximize the value of dividend and royalties income accruing to the Republic of Ghana in a beneficial, accountable and sustainable manner and to monetize Ghana’s mineral wealth in a manner which would bring long term value to Ghana.
MIIF also has 100% ownership of Agyapa Royalties Company, the only state-owned gold royalties company in Africa”.
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