Forum for Accountability and Equal Justice in Northern Ghana (FOAEJU-GH) a known civil society organization operating in the North, has humbly demanded the Upper East Regional Minister’s resignation or sack by the President of the Republic of Ghana.
According to the group, resigning or sacking of the accused Regional Minister will pave way for a proper investigation to be conducted following the alleged allegation on abuse of office, abetment of crime, defrauding and false representation.
However, the group has threatened that if the Regional Minister failed to comply, they will be hitting the streets in the coming weeks to further demand his resignation or dismissal.
“We have been advised by our lawyers not to dwell on matters that have been filed before CHRAJ on abuse of office, abetment of crime, defrauding and false representation as alleged against the Upper East Regional Minister, Hon. Stephen Yakubu. We are of the opinion that the Regional Minister, Hon. Stephen Yakubu alias Akurugu, should resign now or be sacked by the President of the Republic of Ghana to allow a proper investigation to take place. Failing to do so, we will hit the streets of the regional capital in the coming weeks to demand his resignation or dismissal. We want to state that our members cut across the political divide. So, we can assure you that you will see majority of NPP, NDC and others among the protesters when the day comes”.
Forum for Accountability and Equal Justice in Northern Ghana in their press release also saw a press conference organized by one Azumah Atule and Robert Boazor Tampoare as a fiasco because “It is crystal-clear that all attempts to defend wrongdoing and to protect perpetrators to continue to rob people of their legal rights on small-scale mining concessions are indeed the works of his paymasters in political positions”.
Read full statement below:
FORUM FOR ACCOUNTABILITY AND EQUAL JUSTICE IN NORTHERN GHANA (FOAEJU-GH)
Date……………………
PRESS STATEMENT
RESPONSE TO SMALL-SCALE MINERS WHO HAVE SIGNED AND RELINQUISHED THEIR INTERESTS IN SMALL-SCALE MINING CONCESSIONS TO EARL INTERNATIONAL GROUP GHANA GOLD LIMITED IN A PRESS RELEASE DATED 23RD JANUARY, 2023.
Distinguished ladies and gentlemen from the media, good afternoon. We the members of the Forum for Accountability and Equal Justice in Northern Ghana (FOAEJU-GH) drawn from all the municipalities and districts in the Upper East Region seek to draw the public attention to the predicament which some of our members from mining communities are facing notably the recent challenges in Talensi District, Gbane to be precise.
It has come to our notice that one Azumah Atule, who is a member of a small-scale mining group and calls himself a zonal secretary to a Talensi small-scale mining association, signed a release to the subject matter of the day. It is crystal-clear that all attempts to defend wrongdoing and to protect perpetrators to continue to rob people of their legal rights on small-scale mining concessions are indeed the works of his paymasters in political positions.
Ladies and gentlemen, we sincerely want to draw your attention to the background of the release signed by the relinquished person in the name of Azumah Atule. In the background of the press release on the said day, he stated a lot of meetings that ended inconclusively prior to the assumption of office as Upper East Regional Minister of Stephen Yakubu also known as Armstrong Akurugu. The fact remains that Azumah Atule and Robert Boazor Tampoare led an instigation that brought about the burning of some machines belonging to Shaanxi Mining Ghana Limited, a support service company serving Yenyeya and Pubortaaba mines at the time and now known as Earl International Group Ghana Gold Limited.
Inset: A picture of one of the mining machines burned in 2011 through an upheaval led by Atule and Robert.
It is also not true that the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Yenyeya Mining Company, Hon. Charles Taleog Ndanbon who is also the current Upper East Regional Organiser of the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP), was walked out because of any stupid action as alleged by Atule Azumah and his clique. The fact remains that he (Hon. Charles Taleog Ndanbon) lawfully protested against an action by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) negotiating to give permit to Earl International (formerly known as Shaanxi) over his valid permit on the same concession which he deemed as illegal. Hon. Ndanbon had hired a lawyer to seek injunction on the issuance of the permit. This lawful protest caused one Mr Ransford Sekyi, an official of the EPA, to request that Hon. Ndanbon take leave of the meeting to speak to his lawyer about the injunction motion before he may rejoin the meeting. Hon. Ndanbon was not walked out from the meeting for any stupid action. Mr Sekyi is a gentleman and he will do no such thing to people. We rather deem it silly for anyone or any group to falsely state that an EPA boss walked someone out.
Inset: EPA permits issued to Hon. Charles Taleog Ndanbon, Yenyeya Mining Enterprise’s CEO.
It is also not true that Robert Boazor Tampoare and Azumah Atule are concession holders. They are known as members of small-scale mining groups and they (Robert and Atule) cannot hold themselves out as concession owners unlike Hon. Boyak Kolog Zongdan popularly known as Polo and Hon. Charles Taleog Ndanbon who individually have concessions of their own and are CEOs and are well known and respected for responsible mining operations.
To set the records straight, it is clear that the authors of their press release were engineered by some political officeholders who are working hard to destroy the businesses of these two honourable and responsible miners, Hon. Boyak Kolog Zongdan popularly known as Polo and Hon. Charles Taleog Ndanbon.
Ladies and gentlemen, it is sad to state that these defence witnesses (Robert and Atule) to the Upper East Regional Minister Hon. Stephen Yakubu alias Akurugu are trying to jump the gun by trying to defend the Regional Minister on a matter that is already before CHRAJ which the Regional Minister himself admitted to. In fact, the least said about the authors of the release, the better. Why? Robert Boazor Tampoare and his cronies are on record to have insulted traditional rulers and political leaders including DCEs and regional ministers over an attempt by these same Robert and Atule to evict these same Chinese mining company from Gbane. They (Robert and Atule) also had accused regional ministers of taking kickbacks from the same Chinese mining company (Shaanxi). Today, they are back in a wolf skin attempting to defend and protect the same political leaders, traditional authorities and the Shaanxi whom they had accused of serious wrongdoing and illegalities.
Interestingly, one Peter Basana who is not a concessionaire, not a member of any concession group, not an employee or even an underground waste collector in any mining concession is on record with Robert Boazor and Azumah Atule signing fictitious agreements. Here is a copy for your study, ladies and gentlemen. Indeed, he (Peter Basana) was described in their release as a technical adviser. Our question is: which concession is he a technical adviser to? It is shameful for a retiree like Peter Basana from a mining company to be involved in these crooked deals.
Now, ladies and gentlemen, we want to draw your attention to real issues.
One, Yenyeya is a licensed mining concession which has operated for years on the land of Gbane without a tussle or a problem with any regional minister, a DCE, a traditional ruler or any state institution. The shares of Yenyeya from Shaanxi Mining Ghana Limited were never paid to the CEO, Hon. Charles Taleog Ndanbon, through any regional minister be it under the New Patriotic Party (NPP) or the National Democratic Congress (NDC). Why is Hon. Charles Taleog Ndanbon suffering undeserved troubles today at the hands of Hon. Stephen Yakubu (the Upper East Regional Minister) who has connived with the CEO of the Minerals Commission, Martin K. Ayisi, to forcefully take over concessions of Ghanaians for the Chinese because of interests best known to them?
Yenyeya has never entered into any agreement with any other small-scale mining group or a small-scale mining association, or any small-scale mining association leaders before the Regional Minister. It is ridiculous for the so-called small-scale miners to state that the CEO of Yenyeya Mining Enterprise, Hon. Charles Taleog Ndanbon, refused to take or to collect compensation. What a mess! We are strongly aware that the CEO of Yenyeya Mining Enterprise, Hon. Charles Taleog Ndanbon, is into agreement with Wei Xing, CEO of Earl International Ghana Gold Limited (Shaanxi Mining Ghana Limited) not with any so-called small-scale miners or government appointees.
We are also aware that Yenyeya Mining Enterprise and Pubortaaba Mining Group, represented by Hon. Charles Taleog Ndanbon and late Alhaji Awudu Nab respectively, had previously signed memoranda of understanding and agreements with the CEO of Shaanxi Mining Ghana Limited currently known as Earl International Group Ghana Gold Limited, Wei Xing, since 2017. So, how possible is it for Atule, Robert and others to sign agreements with Yenyeya and Pubortaaba? It is absolutely impossible. We are of the view that some gangsters are at work.
Ladies and gentlemen, can you believe that the Regional Minister threatened Hon. Charles Taleog Ndanbon not to go to his (Hon. Ndanbon’s) concession to do anything and warned that if he tried to do so, he (the Regional Minister) would cause the military and the police to arrest him. This threat was issued on Tuesday 13th December, 2022, in the conference room of the Upper East Regional Coordinating Council in the presence of Minerals Commission officials and other small-scale miners. We would not be surprised if the police in particular put professionalism aside just to do the questionable bidding of the Regional Minister because Robert, Atule and the other so-called small-scale miners have revealed in their press statement that Earl International Group Ghana Gold Limited (which Robert, Atule and the other so-called small-scale miners are also supporting today) donated 2 pickups to the Upper East Regional Police Command. Although we do not see anything wrong in law-abiding organisations making donations to the police, we are of the view that the police can be compromised by unprofessionally executing the threat which the Regional Minister issued against Hon. Charles Taleog Ndanbon in favour of Earl International Group Ghana Gold Limited having received 2 pickups from the CEO Mr Wei Xing of the same Earl International Group Ghana Gold Limited.
Two, Hon. Boyak Kolog Zongdan also known as Polo is a member of a concession group and he is the sole proprietor of Nanlamtaaba Mining Enterprise. He has never authorised any leader of a mining association, any concession member of any group, any retiree of any mining firm, any DCE, any regional minister, any CEO of the Minerals Commission and any traditional ruler to relinquish his mining concession to their Chinese paymasters. It is also on record that Hon. Boyak Kolog Zongdan popularly known as Polo received money for an intended goodwill transaction which turned into a fiasco. So, what is the interest of the DCE for Talensi, Hon. Thomas Duanab, and the Upper East Regional Minister Hon. Stephen Yakubu? We are aware that the CEO of Nanlamtaaba Mining Enterprise, Hon. Boyak Kolog Zongdan also known as Polo, has a working document (licence) that will expire in 2025 subject to renewal and has not signed to any agreement and has not authorised anybody to do same. We at the Forum for Accountability and Equal Justice in Northern Ghana smell a rat and we are ready to hunt it down as the clock ticks on.
We have been advised by our lawyers not to dwell on matters that have been filed before CHRAJ on abuse of office, abetment of crime, defrauding and false representation as alleged against the Upper East Regional Minister, Hon. Stephen Yakubu. We are of the opinion that the Regional Minister, Hon. Stephen Yakubu alias Akurugu, should resign now or be sacked by the President of the Republic of Ghana to allow proper investigation to take place. Failing to do so, we will hit the streets of the regional capital in the coming weeks to demand his resignation or dismissal. We want to state that our members cut across the political divide. So, we can assure you that you will see majority of NPP, NDC and others among the protesters when the day comes.
Ladies and gentlemen, in an attempt to defend and protect the Regional Minister in what they deem as an ill-intended petition, they have ended up seriously contradicting themselves. The so-called small-scale miners said in their release that money was not paid to them for compensation but rather money was given to them for goodwill. They also sought to define or explain the meanings of compensation and goodwill but struggled to come clear with their misleading and pathetic definitions. Contrary to their claims, a recent release signed on January 23, 2023, on behalf of the Regional Minister and in defence of the Regional Minister by the Chief Director of the Upper East Regional Coordinating Council, Abubakari Inusah Alhaji, stated categorically that the small-scale mines were given money for compensation. He never stated that the money was for goodwill. This contradicts the statement in the release issued by the so-called small-scale miners at the press conference organised the same day the Upper East Regional Coordinating Council released its own press statement in defence of the Upper East Regional Minister.
It is also on record that the Regional Minister said that the CEO of the Minerals Commission directed small-scale miners to purchase furniture for the Upper East Regional Coordinating Council. The so-called small-scale miners in their press statement also claimed that they voluntarily bought the furniture for the Upper East Regional Coordinating Council after the CEO of the Minerals Commission, Martin K. Ayisi, asked for the furniture from the small-scale miners. On the contrary, the CEO of the Minerals Commission is also on record to have strongly denied these claims, saying he never asked any small-scale miners to purchase furniture for the Upper East Regional Coordinating Council. What a bizarre and dangerous state of confusion! There are recordings of these statements made by the Upper East Regional Minister and the CEO of the Minerals Commission with regard to the illegal demand for furniture from the small-sale miners!
We will not bore you the media with insults as usual of Robert, Atule and the other members of their gang but we will challenge anybody who seeks to defend the Regional Minister on any day on the allegations before CHRAJ. We would suggest to such shameless people to put together their defence and run to CHRAJ for their paymasters to be exonerated. We will wait patiently to come again to you the media if they try to wage any further defence for people who like to kill businesses of indigenous people.
Thank you and enjoy your day.
Convener
Mr Akobulgo Z. Ayeo
…..………………………
(0249142617)
Spokesperson:
Mr Christopher Asimah
……………………………
(0544877964)
Please note, the signed copy of this statement is in the custody of this platform.
Regional Minister’s response coming soon:
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