George Mireku Duker
The Deputy Minister of Lands and Natural Resources in charge of Mining, George Mireku Duker, has allayed fears of workers at the Ghana Bauxite Company (GBC) stressing that some initiatives undertaken by the government will guarantee the long-term survival of the company.
The future of the company, he said, has been a subject of discussion in recent times after the company’s major shareholder pulled out.
He indicated that the exit of the investor created uncertainties, with the workers threatening to embark on a demonstration if government did not step in.
The ministry, in a series of meetings with the Ghana Mine Workers’ Union and other key government stakeholders has subsequently assured the workers of its determination to ensure that the Ghana Bauxite Company operates at its optimum.
Following a number of engagement with investors and other key government institutions on the issue, the Deputy Minister announced that “a headway” has been found and that the company will continue its operations.
Mr. Duker, at a meeting held on Thursday, January 13, 2022 at the company’s premises at Awaso in the Western North Region, disclosed that government will in due course will break an exciting news to the workers.
“This engagement is to let us acknowledge all the efforts we have made regarding the continuity of GBC and its affiliates. One of the legs of GBC had intents of offloading its shares and government created the environment for that to happen. As Deputy Minister, I can boldly say that we have gone through the entire process and the future is bright. In due course, the entity that the shares was offloaded will be made known by the sector minister,” he disclosed.
“The respect you accorded us when we came here and how you have managed and comported yourselves is highly impressive. You have been able to control the workforce and continue operations of the mine,” he commended the leadership of the workers.
Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Integrated Aluminium Development Corporation (GIADEC), Michael Ansah, who was at the meeting, lauded the timely intervention of the ministry in resolving the issue and reaffirmed the commitment of the corporation towards the entire process.
He also praised the management of the company for keeping the company running so far and explained some key decision taken by government in the area to prevent the closure of the company.
On his part, the Chief Executive of Bibiani-Anhwiaso-Bekwai District Assembly, Alfred Amoah, called for continuous engagements between workers and the management to ensure that a more harmonious working relationship is established at the mine.
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