The Coalition of Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) working on Extractives, Anti-Corruption, and Good Governance has petitioned President-elect John Dramani Mahama to terminate the Strategic Mobilisation Limited (SML) contract if he officially begins his work.
According to them, the current SML contract has syphoned off millions of Ghanaian cedis into private ownership without providing adequate benefits to the country.
The CSOs opined that terminating the contract will effectively close a major revenue leak and help restore public trust in financial management.
They also appealed to the president-elect to terminate the Agyapa Royalties agreement and reassess the Mineral Income Investment Fund (MIIF) Act.
“Your Excellency, the Coalition stands ready to support your administration in implementing reforms that enhance transparency, accountability, and efficiency. To this end, we respectfully present the following recommendations as critical priorities for your new administration:
“1. Terminate the Strategic Mobilization Limited (SML) Contract, The ongoing SML contract has diverted millions of Ghana Cedis into private hands without delivering commensurate value to the nation. Terminating this agreement will seal a significant revenue leakage and restore public confidence in financial management practices.”
“Abolish the Agyapa Royalties Deal and Review the Mineral Income Investment Fund (MIIF) Act. We urge your administration to permanently terminate the Agyapa Royalties Deal, which threatens Ghana’s mineral wealth and has faced widespread public rejection.”
Meanwhile, the CSOs have also proposed reforms in the energy sector.
They called on the President-elect to reduce political interference in State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) operating within this domain.
“Limit political interference in State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) within the energy sector, especially GNPC and Ghana Gas, to promote leadership stability and operational efficiency.
“Address persistent challenges in the energy distribution value chain, which have eroded sector performance and profitability.”
The CSOs include The Africa Centre for Energy Policy (ACEP), Natural Resource Governance Institute (NRGI) Ghana Anti-Corruption Coalition (GACC), iWatch Africa, Revenue Mobilization Africa (RMA), Third World Network-Africa (TWN-Africa), IMANI Centre for Policy and Education, Centre for Extractives and Development (CEDA), Institute of Energy Security (IES) and Human Environment and Livelihoods Platform Foundation (HELP Foundation Africa).
By: Rainbowradioonline.com/Ghana
