The Bono Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Kwame Baffoe, popularly known as Abronye DC, has sparked fresh debate over indigenous participation in Ghana’s mining industry after openly acknowledging his previous role in frustrating Ibrahim Mahama’s bauxite interests while now advocating greater opportunities for the businessman in the gold sector.
In what appears to be a remarkable shift in his assessment of Ibrahim Mahama’s business capabilities, Abronye argued that Ghana would derive greater benefits from allowing the businessman to develop its gold resources than from continuing to rely heavily on foreign mining companies.
He pointed to the activities of Engineers & Planners at Damang, claiming that the company’s contribution to development in the mining community exceeds what multinational mining giant Newmont has achieved in Ahafo over two decades.
The comparison is particularly striking given Newmont’s long-standing operations in Ghana and the relatively recent involvement of Engineers & Planners in the Damang Mine.
The Nyinahin Admission
Abronye’s comments have attracted particular interest because of his acknowledgement that he was among those who actively opposed Ibrahim Mahama’s involvement in the Nyinahin bauxite concession in the Ashanti Region.
The concession became the subject of intense political controversy in 2017, when Exton Cubic Group Limited, which had engaged Engineers & Planners, faced opposition over its mining rights.
Abronye was among the prominent political figures who challenged the arrangement.
Years later, however, the NPP regional chairman appears to be offering a different assessment of the businessman whose mining interests he once opposed.
His latest position suggests a growing recognition that Ghanaian-owned companies, when adequately resourced and given the opportunity, can compete with multinational operators and deliver tangible benefits to host communities.
Beyond Political Differences
What makes Abronye’s comments particularly significant is the political history surrounding Ibrahim Mahama, the brother of President John Dramani Mahama.
For years, the businessman’s commercial activities have featured prominently in political controversies between the NPP and the National Democratic Congress (NDC).
Against that background, Abronye’s endorsement of greater opportunities for Ibrahim Mahama stands out as an unusual intervention from a prominent NPP figure.
His argument places the focus on local ownership, community development and the retention of mining revenues within Ghana rather than on the political affiliations of investors.
A Bigger Question for Ghana
Beyond the personalities involved, Abronye’s remarks raise a fundamental question about Ghana’s mineral wealth: should the country be doing more to empower indigenous mining companies rather than depending predominantly on foreign operators?
His comparison of Engineers & Planners with Newmont remains an assertion that requires independent assessment, particularly given the differences in the companies’ periods of operation and their respective community investments.
Nevertheless, the political significance of his comments is difficult to ignore.
Abronye, who once participated in efforts to stop a mining arrangement associated with Ibrahim Mahama, is now publicly arguing that entrusting more of Ghana’s gold resources to the businessman could deliver greater benefits to the country.
It is a striking political reversal that brings the debate over Ghanaian ownership of the nation’s mineral resources back into sharp focus.
