The Minority in Parliament has issued a warning that a future New Patriotic Party (NPP) government will conduct a comprehensive review of mining sector transactions under the current administration and reverse any agreements deemed questionable or detrimental to national interest, particularly those benefiting businessman Ibrahim Mahama, brother of President John Dramani Mahama.

This declaration was made in a press release issued on Wednesday, March 18, 2026, and signed by the MP for Mampong and Ranking Member on the Lands and Natural Resources Committee of Parliament, Kwaku Ampratwum-Sarpong.

The Minority Caucus accused the administration of "enabling state capture in the mineral sector, with Ibrahim Mahama and his company Engineers & Planners emerging as the central figure in a pattern of asset acquisitions and institutional influence."

The statement described the developments as a dangerous drift toward state capture, threatening institutional integrity, economic stability and democratic accountability barely one year into the Mahama presidency.

It highlighted cases including the impending state takeover and transition of the Damang Gold Mine from Gold Fields Ghana in April 2026 after the non-renewal of the lease and a one-year extension, the acquisition of the Black Volta and Sankofa Gold Projects by Engineers & Planners in September 2025 from Australian-linked firms Azumah Resources Ghana Ltd and Upwest Resources and ongoing opacity around lease and allocation decisions at the Nyinahin bauxite deposits under the Ghana Integrated Aluminium Development Corporation (GIADEC).

The Minority alleged that these transactions, including the Black Volta deal facilitated by significant financing such as a reported US$100 million from the ECOWAS Bank for Investment and Development where Ghana's Finance Minister chairs the Board of Governors, involved pressure, intimidation, and coercive leverage rather than open commercial processes.

They pointed to key appointments in sector institutions—such as GIADEC's Chairman and CEO with prior legal ties to Ibrahim Mahama and Engineers & Planners, along with officials at the Minerals Commission, Ghana Gold Board, and Minerals Income Investment Fund having consulting or employment links to Mahama's entities, as evidence of a convergence where agencies effectively report to Ibrahim Mahama's orbit rather than the Minister for Lands and Natural Resources or Parliament.

While reiterating support for genuine local content and Ghanaian participation in mining, crediting previous NPP administrations for advancing competitive and transparent opportunities, the Minority rejected what it termed Family Monopoly and State Capture.

It argued that the concentration of major engagements around one individual, enabled by proximity to presidential power, undermines fairness and disguises selective empowerment as broad-based participation.

The release warned that such opacity and influence are damaging Ghana's reputation as a predictable investment destination, citing a recent drop of seven places—from 46th to 53rd—in the Global Mining Investment Attractiveness Index amid governance and transparency concerns.

In its demands, the Minority called for "immediate disclosure on the incoming Damang operator, selection criteria, financing, transition plans, and team details including conflicts of interest; clarity on Nyinahin bauxite decisions; full transparency on Black Volta and Sankofa transactions and related financing; and enforceable conflict-of-interest safeguards across mineral sector institutions."

The Minority vowed to resist the emerging state capture firmly, lawfully and without compromise.

It placed on record that any future NPP government will launch a full-scale review of these transactions, enforce accountability under the law and decisively reverse any arrangement that undermines the national interest or concentrates Ghana's natural resources in the hands of a privileged few and the president's family.

Those responsible, both perpetrators and beneficiaries, will face the full force of the law.

Ghana’s mineral wealth belongs to the people, not to any family, the statement emphasised.



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