Former President Mahama has urged the government to proceed with the financial arrangements of the Gold for Oil to Parliament for proper scrutiny and value for money.
According to Mr. Mahama, because the Gold for Oil arrangement is a global financial transaction, government must present it to Parliament for legislative review and approval.
This was said by the former president during a discussion with NDC members from the UK and Ireland over the weekend in London.
The Sinohydro arrangement, which trades the nation’s bauxite for Chinese infrastructure development, was mentioned by ex-President Mahama in response to a question as a prime example of barter commerce.
He added that “it does not matter that the Gold for Oil contract is a barter trade” since “foreign financial transactions require the sanction of Parliament,” according to Ghana’s 1992 Constitution.
He went on to say why not the current agreement in which Ghana’s gold is being exchanged for oil since the Sinohydro agreement was a barter deal and went to Parliament for clearance because it is an international financial transaction.
The agreement is currently cloaked in total secrecy, with only government officials involved in the transaction knowing the specifics, the former president remarked.
He called the progression deplorable.
“The transaction is completely opaque, and that is one of the biggest issues with this government,” the speaker said. They conceal everything and act anyway they like, he observed.
Mr. Mahama thinks that with legislative oversight, Ghanaians will know how much money was spent on the gold for oil agreement and who the real beneficiaries were
