Stakeholders have raised serious concerns over the credibility of a recent inspection at the Bogoso-Prestea Mine, calling for the immediate constitution of an independent technical team to validate earlier findings.
In a petition addressed to the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources, the group argued that key operational and technical issues were not physically inspected during the exercise led by officials from the Minerals Commission.
According to the petitioners, critical concerns—including capital investment, employee entitlements, tailings safety, dewatering activities, and the structural integrity of mining infrastructure—were overlooked.
They further alleged that much of the inspection was limited to boardroom discussions with management, while field assessments were either incomplete or entirely absent.
The group also questioned the impartiality of the process, suggesting that conclusions may have been drawn without a comprehensive evaluation of the issues raised.
They warned that any report based on such limited engagement risks misrepresenting the true state of operations at the mine.
The petitioners are therefore urging government to commission an independent and transparent technical review to safeguard national interest and restore confidence in the process.
Read their Statement below:
07/04/2026
The Minister
Land and Natural Resources
Accra
Dear Sir,
RE: Request for Constitution of an Independent Technical Team to Validate Petition Findings at Bogoso-Prestea Mine
We respectfully write further to the inspection conducted at the Bogoso-Prestea Mine by the Ag. Chief Inspector of Mines, together with the Deputy Chief Inspector of Mines and a Senior Inspector, pursuant to your directive following our petition.
We acknowledge and appreciate your prompt intervention in directing this inspection. However, we are compelled, in the interest of accuracy, transparency, and the protection of national interest, to draw your attention to significant limitations in the scope and execution of the exercise.
Our petition raised critical concerns requiring physical verification, including:
- The status of declared investment and capital deployment
- Payment of employees’ entitlements (SSNIT, Tier 2, and severance)
- The Tailings Storage Facility (TSF) without freeboard
- The status of dewatering at the Prestea Underground Mine
- The open-pit mining operations at Bondaye
- The deteriorating integrity of the Bondaye Shaft due to proximity of open-pit mining
- The procurement and installation of key capital infrastructure, particularly the gyratory crusher
Regrettably, we note that none of these critical operational and technical areas were visited or assessed during the inspection.
We further understand and state that:
- The first day of the visit was largely spent in boardroom engagement with the management of Heath Goldfields Limited; and
- The second day’s activities were truncated, as the Ag. Chief Inspector of Mines had to leave the site to join your official engagement at Damang.
We are further constrained to raise concerns regarding the perceived impartiality of the inspection process.
We have received information indicating that, in the course of a telephone conversation with a former employee of the Bogoso-Prestea Mine, statements attributed to the Ag. Chief Inspector of Mines suggested that conclusions may have been formed prior to a comprehensive assessment of the issues raised in our petition.
The absence of physical inspection of the key areas identified raises legitimate concerns about the objectivity of the process. In matters of this nature, it is essential that both the process and its outcomes are demonstrably impartial and beyond reproach.
Honourable Minister, the issues raised in our petition—particularly those relating to investment representation and operational integrity—are too critical to be addressed without thorough and independent technical validation.
Any conclusions drawn without physical inspection of the identified areas risk being incomplete and may not accurately reflect the true situation on the ground.
Respectfully submitted,
……………………………. ……………………………..
Hon. Badu Samora Messiah K.A. Baidoo
(Native of Himan) (Native of Bondaye)
……………………………. ……………………………..
Ebenezer Otchere Awal Mohammed
(Native of Himan) (Indigene of Prestea)
Cc:
Office of the President
Republic of Ghana
The Chief Executive Officer (CEO)
Minerals Commission
