Suame MP John Darko has challenged the legal basis for the termination of the mining agreement involving Narawa Mines, arguing that an alleged $8 million debt should have been recovered through the courts rather than used as grounds to take over an investment worth hundreds of millions of dollars.
Darko, speaking on TV3’s Keypoint, said his examination of the Minerals and Mining Act suggested that the government had failed to follow the appropriate legal procedure in dealing with the outstanding debt.
He explained that Sections 24 and 25 of the Act deal with annual mineral rights payments and royalties, while Section 26 provides for the recovery of debts owed by mining companies.
“When you read the law clearly, it tells you that when a mining company owes either a royalty or a mining right fee, what the government has to do is to go to court because it’s a debt that is recoverable through the court. Period,” he said.
He questioned the decision to rely on Section 68 to terminate the mining agreement, arguing that the existence of a debt did not automatically justify the cancellation of the company’s mining rights.
“So if the Minerals Commission advises the minister and by that invokes Section 68 to terminate the agreement, that by itself, for me, is wrong,” he stated.
Darko said the financial implications of the decision made the government’s approach particularly troubling, considering the value of the mining investment compared with the amount allegedly owed.
“We are looking at an investment worth over hundreds of millions of dollars and a debt of $8 million. You are saying that by reason of this $8 million debt, you’ve taken over a $100 million or more facility and then you’ve given it to Chinese,” he said.
He further questioned why the government would insist that the affected company pursue legal action while another group was already operating at the mining site.
“Whilst they are asking these companies to go to court, the Chinese are there mining,” he added.
Darko maintained that the government should have pursued the legally prescribed debt recovery process instead of terminating the agreement and transferring control of the mining operation.
