Freddie Blay
WACAM, a Civil Society Organisation (CSO) focused on the environmental mining sector and human rights, has distanced itself from a statement made by a group of CSOs calling for the removal of Freddie Blay, as the Board Chairman of the Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC) and its CEO, Opoku Ahweneeh Danquah.
The statement was made by a group called the CSO Coalition on Extractive Governance, which included the Africa Centre for Energy Policy (ACEP), Centre for Democratic Development (CDD-Ghana), the Chamber of Petroleum Consumers-Ghana (COPEC), Imani Centre for Policy and Education and 25 others.
The CSOs reportedly demanded the removal of Blay and Danquah due to their alleged intention to sell 50% stakes in Jubilee Holdings Limited (JOHL) to the South African oil company, PetroSA.
The CSOs claimed that the stakes held by JOHL hold substantial revenue potential for Ghana and that their sale would pose significant risks to Ghana’s interests in the petroleum sector.
However, in a statement, Hannah Owusu-Koranteng, the Associate Executive Director of WACAM, stated that the organization had no knowledge of the statement and was not associated with it.
She further condemned the unethical methods and the deception implied in the statement.
According to Mrs Owusu-Koranteng, the publication does not indicate an authentic representation of the CSOs’ position.
The Management of WACAM has sighted a statement in the media indicating that WACAM is part of a group of Civil Society Organisations calling for the removal of Mr Freddie Blay and Mr Opoku Ahweneeh Danquah from GNPC Board.
“WACAM dissociates itself from the statement which we believe was issued under circumstance that is not clear to us because beyond listing names of organisations as being part of the statement, there are no signatures to authenticate the signing on to the statement by individuals who are representatives of organisations.
“It is difficult to ascertain the individuals, or organisations that spearheaded this statement.
“We want the media, WACAM members, our associates and the public to know that WACAM is not associated with the statement,” according to the statement issued by WACAM boss on Wednesday May 24, 2023.
The statement made by the CSOs has created a controversy in the media.
The Energy Minister, Dr Mathew Opoku Prempeh was alleged to have objected to the move by the GNPC Board to offer interests in Ghana’s oil fields to PetroSA.
Read full statement from WACAM below
24th May 2023
WACAM DISSOCIATES ITSELF FROM STATEMENT CALLING FOR REMOVAL OF FREDDIE BLAY AND MR AHWENEEH DANQUAH
The Management of Wacam has sighted a statement in the media indicating that Wacam is part of a group of Civil Society Organisations calling for the removal of Mr Freddie Blay and Mr Opoku Ahweneeh Dapaah from GNPC Board.
Wacam dissociates itself from the statement which we believe was issued under circumstance that is not clear to us because beyond listing names of organisations as being part of the statement, there are no signatures to authenticate the signing on to the statement by individuals who are representatives of organisations.
It is difficult to ascertain the individuals, or organisations that spearheaded this statement.
We want the media, Wacam members, our associates and the public to know that Wacam is not associated with the statement.
Furthermore, we condemn the unethical methods and the deception which the purported statement seems to achieve. We hope that Wacam’s statement to dissociate itself from the referenced statement clearly indicates our dissatisfaction and condemnation of the publication.
Thank you
Hannah Owusu-Koranteng (Mrs.)
(Associate Executive Director)
By Vincent Kubi