Jinapor: John Mahama did not promise 10% oil revenue to Western Chiefs

John Jinapor         Aide to John Mahama says the Vice-President did not promise a ten per cent share of the oil revenue to chiefs and people in the Western Region. John Jinapor said his outfit has made a thorough check of all speeches and statements then candidate John Mahama made in the heat of the 2008 elections and is convinced he did not promise ten per cent of oil revenue to the people of Western Region. The Vice-President has been linked with recent agitations by the Western Regional House of Chiefs for a ten per cent share in the total oil revenue. The New Crusading Guide early this week culled a story from Myjoyonline.com, dated 31 August 2008, in which then candidate Mahama was reported to have promised the Western Region chiefs that future NDC government will allocate ten per cent of the oil resources to them. The story was headlined NDC: 10% of oil revenue will go to WR. Joy News correspondent Kweku Owusu Peprah who filed the original report in August 2008 later in March 2010 asked the Vice-President if he was going to deliver on his promise of giving a 10 per cent share of the oil revenue to the Western Chiefs. The Vice President John Mahama answered “Certainly a certain percentage to go into training and retraining of the people who are in proximity to the oil well so that they have a sense of participation in that [discovery]. We are yet to discuss it but certainly I am in favour and it must be able to go to the representatives of the people- Parliament. And if they say ten per cent should be spent in the immediate vicinity or proximity of the oil then so be it.” However in an interview with Joy News John Jinapor, aide to Vice-President challenged the authenticity of the report filed in 2008, saying his outfit is investigating how Myjoyonline.com came by the said story. “We have checked through all the speeches he made during the campaign and we have not come across any statement where he indicated that 10 per cent of the money must go to a certain development fund. I don’t know where that story came from,” he stated. He explained that the Vice-President had a discussion with the Nzema chief during the Centenary Celebration of Dr. Kwame Nkrumah and it was during that discussion that the chief raised the issue of a ten per cent share. According to him, the vice-president said the issue would have to be looked into by Parliament and a decision taken accordingly. He expressed surprise at the turn of events but maintained the government has resolved to develop the Western Region. Story by Nathan Gadugah/Myjoyonline.com/Ghana