Member of Parliament for Assin Central Constituency Kennedy Ohene Agaypong has said all the civil society organizations (CSOs) that are up against the Agyapa Royalties deal are engaged in intellectual dishonesty regarding their position on this matter.
Mr Agyapong described the CSOs as the most corrupt group of people he has ever met in his life because, in his view, all their advocacies are purely motivated by money and not true love for the nation.
Ghana’s legislature approved the controversial Agyapa Mineral Royalty Limited agreement Friday, August 14 despite a protest from the Minority.
Based on the agreement, Agyapa Royalties Limited (ARL) will trade shares on the Ghana Stock Exchange and the London Stock Exchange for private people to buy. But the Mineral Income Investment Fund(MIIF) will remain the majority shareholder.
The Minority said the deal makes it impossible for a future government to replace managers of Agyapa Royalties Limited although the Minerals Income Investment Fund will remain the majority shareholder.
The flagbearer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), John Dramani Mahama, has also questioned the deal and said he will not recognize it in case he wins this year’s polls.
A group of CSOs led by Dr. Steve Manteaw, Chairman of the Civil Society Platform on Oil and Gas, noted that the government of Ghana and Parliament rushed in approving the controversial Agyapa Royalties agreement.
Speaking at a press conference on Tuesday, August 25, Dr Manteaw said: “What we are telling government is let’s slow down…let’s have more transparency, more consensus building around the approach before we go forward with the approach.
“I don’t know of any national emergency that warrants that we should rush the process to raise funds for development.”
But the Assin Central lawmaker said on Net 2 TV Wednesday, August 26 that due diligence was done on the deal because it went to the floor of Parliament for a thorough debate to be conducted on it before approval.
He said: “All these civil society groups, Imani and the rest that are complaining are engaged in intellectual dishonesty. They have no genuine love for the nation, they are the most corrupt people I have ever come across.
“The deal came to Parliament for a thorough scrutiny and so what are they talking about? Are they telling us that they are better than the parliamentarians who debated the deal?
“They are complaining because all these CSOs were not involved in the discussion on the deal and because they were not involved that makes it bad?
“ All they wanted was to have been involved in the deliberations. They are the most corrupt group of people I have ever met because all the work they do are motivated by money and not genuine love for the nation.”