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CSOs petition Mahama; demand transparency in oil, mining concessions

According to the CSOs, the lack of effective laws on disclosure raises the possibility of politicians secretly operating companies in the names of other persons.

 

These were contained in an open letter by the CSOs to the president ahead of the President's address at the global anti-corruption summit in the United Kingdom.

The CSOs said the president must "declare its commitment to fight corruption in Ghana and in the extractive industries in particular."

"These commitments should also be backed by timelines to enable citizens to hold the President to account," the letter from the CSOs added.

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Below is the full statement from the group:

Civil Society Anti-Corruption Agenda on Extractive IndustriesCivil Society Organizations at a Dialogue on Anti-Corruption on Extractive Industries organized by the Africa Centre for Energy Policy (ACEP) on the 9th of May 2015, as prelude to the UK Anti-Corruption Summit, have called on the Government of Ghana to declare its commitment to fight corruption in Ghana and in the extractive industries in particular.The Dialogue considered the hotspots for corruption in Ghana and recommended specific commitments expected of the President of Ghana to ensure that Ghana takes bold steps at eradicating corruption.The participants called on the President to commit to a 10-point anti-corruption agenda as follows:An open and competitive process for awarding oil, gas and mining concessionsA mandatory requirement for the disclosure of oil, gas and mining contractsA mandatory requirement for the establishment of a public register of beneficial owners in the extractive industries and all their associated interest in Ghana and abroad. This could be done through a number of planned legislations – the Petroleum (Exploration and Production) Bill, the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative Bill or the Companies Bill.A requirement for the criminal prosecution of public officials found to have engaged in conflict of interest during oil, gas and mining licensing and in the regulation of operationsThe passage of the Right to Information BillThe passage of the Petroleum (Explorations and Production) BillThe Subscription to Open Data Standards across Ministries Departments and AgenciesConfirm Appointed Heads of Institutions in time to ensure their independence and security of tenureSign on to the Voluntary and Automatic Frameworks for exchange of information to address illicit financial flowsEffectively implement the National Anti-Corruption Action Plan (NACAP) or transform it into an Anti-Corruption Law.These commitments should also be backed by timelines to enable citizens to hold the President to account. It was agreed that much of the commitment to fight corruption in the past has been mere rhetoric without timelines and clarity on actions to be taken.It is our belief that our President who will be among world leaders to address the UK anti-corruption summit, will use this great platform to commit the government to an anti- corruption agenda that will lay the foundation for a transformative society in Ghana, in which official impunity, corruption, and mismanagement of public resources will be stopped.

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