Wale calls on gov’t: ‘suspend’ all mining licences

LEADER of Opposition Hon Matthew Wale has made a strong call to the government to put a stop and suspend all mining licences until a proper mining policy is in place.

Speaking during the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) hearing recently, Hon Wale said unless a thorough review and amendments are done with the mining act, a moratorium should be placed on all mining activities.

“ The government should stop issuing mining licences and close the other licenses and review how best they can manage this sector in the best interest of this country. There has to be some seriousness in this sector. The government is very weak in this sector without realising that companies are manipulating the system and we are becoming losers of our own resources,” he said.

Hon Wale calls for a serious need to impose a change in policy in the mining sector.

The Opposition Leader said the government must show genuineness and to engage and take control of the mining sector or we will replicate what the logging sector had experienced and it will be worse.

“The current Mineral Bill fairly has some good intentions but some very terrible ones and most especially Clause 49 which restricts government’s involvement.

“I wonder who is driving that interest but this has to change,” he said.

Hon Wale said the sad reality is that most mining licences are operating for their own cash flow for their existence and we end up losing the resource.

“In logging we can replant but for mining we are losing resources, our soil, our minerals and revenue. For instance, the matter of associated minerals. We are held hostage depending on inaccurate information from companies without knowing what type of minerals, its quantity and value are exiting our shores,” he said.

The Opposition Leader recommended that the government should take another approach and look at the idea of government to do prospecting.

“Get some technical people, get the tenements to be held by the government. And then government finds commercial partners so we do not risk companies manipulating pricings,” Hon Wale said.

He said in that case we have more control and we license ourselves through an SOE.

“Unless we do that we run a very high risk of being victims of transfer pricing and we will lose total control of our resources,” Hon Wale said.

The Opposition Leader shared his disappointments on the lack of government enforcement and capacity to even ascertain the type of minerals, its volume and exact pricing.

He cautioned that the miners have manipulated the whole mineral sector.

“The government is absolutely monopolised by the exporter,” he said.

The CBSI Governor Dr Luke Forau recently has admitted that they have suspicions that transfer pricing is happening in the mineral sector.

Governor Forau said the government needs to come up with a policy to enforce areas that need attention. If not done right it will be worse and we will be left high and dry.

He said the ministry responsible should be accountable to do monitoring on the ground before every exports to ascertain the type of minerals, volume, exact pricing of exports and to inform CBSI to act upon.

But that is not the case.

ENDS///

– OPPOSITION GROUP