The Director of the Ghana School of Law (GSL), Yaw Oppong, has cautioned the Australian company Barari DV over the Lithium deal recently signed with the government of Ghana, urging them to proceed with caution.
Mr Oppong emphasised that Barari DV cannot enforce the agreement until it is presented to Parliament and ratified.
During an interview with Citi FM on Thursday, December 14, he called on Parliament to engage stakeholders before endorsing the deal.
“It is important that these calls are taken into account. The investors should understand that the mere signing of the agreement does not make it effective. They should understand that until it goes to Parliament for approval, they have signed nothing”.
“All these discourses have been very good. We should encourage it, and it’s been so substantially stable. If we continue to do this, our Members in Parliament will usually listen to us, the Executive will usually listen to us before we enter into an agreement and it ratifies the political terms and subsequently, we get ourselves in trouble,” he said.
Pressure is mounting on the government to reconsider the lithium agreement amid growing concerns that Ghana may not be receiving a fair deal.
The discussions revolve around potential resource exploitation and perceived inadequate benefits for the country, fueling public discourse and calls for greater transparency and equity.
Prominent figures, including former Chief Justice Sophia Akuffo and seasoned private legal practitioner Sam Okudzeto, have voiced their opposition to the deal.
For the former Chief Justice, the current contract echoes a colonial and Guggisberg-type arrangement.
The $250-million project, situated in Ewoyaa, Mfantseman Municipality in the Central Region, is slated to commence production in 2025.
Notably, the deal incorporates a 10% royalty and 13% free carried interest for the state, surpassing the existing 5% and 10% in other mining agreements.
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