The Minority Chief Whip, Muntaka Mubarak, has said the Minority in Parliament will vigorously oppose the Agyapa Minerals Royalty deal should it be reintroduced in the Mid-Year Budget Review.
According to him, the government has failed, since the deal was withdrawn from Parliament, to properly engage with stakeholders as well as the Minority side in order to build consensus for approval.
He also noted that the government, over the years, has failed to build trust with both the Minority and the people of Ghana in terms of their management of state finances thus, it will be injurious for the state for such a deal to be approved.
Speaking on JoyNews’ PM Express Monday, he said, “I can bet you that our opposition to Agyapa is bigger than our opposition to e-levy and I will not sit here and tell you our strategy, but believe me, if that attempt is made, they won’t find it easy.”
“I just want them to appreciate one thing; you know we fought to get it removed from the budget, so one it’s not in the budget, well someone will say they may reintroduce it in the Mid-Year Budget Review. I won’t sit here and tell you what we’re going to do.
“They will get fearless and most resistant ever had in any Parliament if an attempt is made to bring this thing, believe me. I’m not sending any threat, I’m only telling you that, look, any attempt to think that you can just come with Agyapa into this house, you should prepare for the worst,” he added.
The Asawase MP further bemoaned the silence of opinion leaders on the matter.
According to him, their failure to speak on the ills of the deal has left the Minority with no other option than to employ every tactic possible to ensure the Agyapa deal is not passed.
“Because you see we’ve come to realize that – I’m sorry to say this – a lot of the elderly so-called opinion leaders in our country, everybody has gone dead silent. Because of their huge and super loud silence, it leaves us with no other option than to take the fight and prevent Agyapa from ever happening into our own hands,” he said.
Muntaka Mubarak added that regardless of the revision the government claims it has done to the Agyapa deal, as long as the deal is still referred to as ‘Agyapa’ it shall be opposed.
“If they want anything about our minerals, one, change the name; two, let it go through the vigorous process of parliament where people can come, whether in the mining sector, nananom, people come give their view, so that Parliament can own that we can do this,” he suggested.