Gold-for-Oil: We need to fight against associated corruption risk – GhEITI

Co-chair of the Ghana Extractive Industry Transparency Initiative (GhEITI), Dr Steve Manteaw has asserted that there is a corruption risk associated with the government's Gold-for-Oil transaction which needs to be investigated.

According to the Chairman of the Alliance of Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), there are numerous corrupt controversies surrounding the gold-for-oil trade.

He claimed that the gold is purchased from Ghanaians and sold on the international market, usually requiring the involvement of a third-party organization and the execution of an international agreement between the two parties, which needs parliamentary approval per the constitution of Ghana.

He continued by saying that the company that will also be providing the nation with its oil would need a contract between the nation and the said company, which also needs parliamentary approval but that has been neglected in the entire contract agreement.

“If this went into parliament, I believe all these controversies won’t come up. First of all, we won’t sell the gold we're selling to Ghanaians though the gold will be bought from them. It will be sold on the international market.

“And we will be trading with a third party, rumours also say that the first tranche of the 40,000 is a Russian company that brought the money, which means that, there’s going to be an agreement between the company and the nation.

“And such an agreement is an international transaction and per the Constitution’s article 181, such deals need parliamentary approval.

“Also, the person who will be supplying the petroleum product to Ghana will go through some level of agreement and such trading agreement needs parliamentary approval.

“We will fight this deal till our demands are met because there’s a corruption risk related to it, which needs to be prevented.

“I don’t know if parliament are sleeping or what, because parliament needs to invite those leading the process to interrogate them in parliament so that if there are any policy documents, they can take and investigate properly into the deal because we’re tired of corruption activities in this country,” he said.

Background:

Vice President, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia in November 2022 announced the government’s plan to undertake the gold-for-oil initiative. The deal hinged on buying oil products with Ghana’s gold instead of the US dollar.

Dr Bawumia on Facebook earlier explained that the usage of gold to purchase oil would also address Ghana’s dwindling foreign reserves as well as reduce demand for US dollars by oil importers.

“It will fundamentally change our balance of payments and significantly reduce the persistent depreciation of our currency,” the vice president earlier wrote.

Under the policy, the government believes that using gold to purchase oil products would also bring stability to the exchange rate market and ensure domestic oil operators do not solely depend on foreign exchange to import products.



AM/SARA