News
Former workers of Bogoso Prestea mine picket over Heath Goldfields Ltd. lack of financial capacity ; demand full payment of entitlement.
Former workers of the Bogoso-Prestea Mine on Wednesday, December 10, massed up at the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources and the Minerals Commission in Accra to demand payment of their long-overdue benefits.
Wearing red and black and chanting protest songs, the angry workers called on the government to immediately intervene and ensure they receive the entitlements owed them after years of uncertainty.
The group, made up of scores of ex-workers, said the situation has dragged on since their disengagement from the mine, which has struggled with several ownership changes and what the workers describe as poor financial management by the current operator, Health Goldfields (HGF).
A petition addressed to the Lands and Natural Resources Minister, Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, was received by an official of the ministry.
The document stressed two main demands: full payment of outstanding benefits and the replacement of the mine’s operator with a more financially stable company.
According to the workers, the unpaid benefits include provident fund arrears, end-of-service pay, redundancy packages, accrued leave, bonuses and other statutory entitlements.
Many of the affected workers have been without income for months.
The union’s convenor, Gabriel Madobi, said some former employees have died without receiving what is legally due them, leaving their families in hardship.
He added that elderly and unwell workers who spent decades at the mine now live in difficult conditions.
The union blames the crisis on the mine’s turbulent recent history.
After years under Golden Star Resources, the mine moved to Future Global Resources before being sold to Health Goldfields Limited (HGL).
The workers claim HGL has not demonstrated the financial capacity needed to run the mine or pay outstanding benefits, resulting in repeated disputes and operational shutdowns.
They want government to step in and ensure a competent investor takes over to protect the mine and the community that depends on it.
Officials at the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources and the Minerals Commission have not yet commented on the protest.
However, the workers say they will continue to push until their grievances are addressed.
By: Jacob Aggrey
National Democratic Congress (NDC) National Executive Committee member and Volta River Authority (VRA) Board Member, Wonder Victor Kutor, has described calls for the resignation of Foreign Affairs Minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa as premature and unjustified.
He argued that there was no evidence to establish that the minister had committed any wrongdoing to warrant such demands.
Speaking on Joy News in Accra on Wednesday, October 28, 2026, Mr Kutor questioned what had changed to justify the growing calls for the minister to step down.
He recalled that the Ranking Member on Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee, Samuel Abu Jinapor, had earlier indicated that the opposition was not accusing Mr Ablakwa of any wrongdoing.
Mr Kutor, therefore, challenged those demanding the minister’s resignation to provide fresh evidence to support their position.
“The call for the Minister to resign is premature, it is untenable. There is no evidence. I mean, what has he done wrong?” he questioned.
He added that documents, including boarding passes, airline receipts and flight manifests relating to the minister’s return journey, had been provided.
Mr Kutor expressed concern that the calls for Mr Ablakwa’s resignation could discourage young politicians from speaking out against corruption and advocating transparency.
According to him, politicians should not be targeted or maligned for demanding accountability, warning that such treatment could create the impression that speaking against corruption could later become a liability when one is appointed to public office.
He maintained that calling for accountability and transparency should not be used as grounds to target public officials without evidence of wrongdoing.
By: Jacob Aggrey
Ghana will host the Africa Festival of Arts, Culture and Creatives (AFESTAC) 2026 alongside Industrial Skills Week Africa (ISWA) 2026 in Accra from December 9 to 12, 2026.
On the back of these programmes, Minister of Tourism, Culture and Creative Arts, Abla Dzifa Gomashie, has called on corporate Ghana, the media and the general public to support the initiative through partnerships, sponsorships and active participation.
The events, supported by the African Union Development Agency (AUDA-NEPAD), will bring together stakeholders to celebrate Africa’s rich cultural heritage, strengthen the creative economy, promote industrial skills development and create employment opportunities for young people.
By Edem Mensah-Tsotorme
