The Lands and Natural Resources Minister, Samuel Abu Jinapor has disclosed that Maxam Ghana Limited, the company whose explosives, while being transported, caused the Appiaste disaster, was found culpable for breaches on the principle of vicarious liability.

Addressing Members of Parliament (MP) on Thursday after an urgent question was filled by Bongo MP, Edward Bawa on findings of the Appiatse Committee, the Minister said Maxam breached six mining regulations.

“Maxam is the company responsible for the manufacture, storage and/or transportation of explosives and to that extent, companies which are agents of Maxam. On the principle of vicarious liability, Maxam is held liable for any breaches or occurrences in the conduct of their agents,” he said on the floor of the House.

The breaches, amongst others, include; failure to ensure that transportation of explosives was managed by a certified explosives manager, failure to ensure that activities involving explosives are carried out only by competent and certified persons and failure to ensure that the code of safe working practice developed for the transportation of explosives were followed.

The rest are; failure to ensure that the transportation was done under the supervision of a person with the required certificate of competency, failure to ensure that the transportation of explosives was carried out by a person with a business license to transport explosives and failure to ensure that the transportation of explosives are under the direct control of a person who has a certificate of competence.

Meanwhile, Maxam Ghana Limited on February 8, denied any breach of the Minerals and Mining Regulations, 2012 (L.I. 2177) after a three-member committee set up by the Lands Ministry accused the company of having done so.

“Maxam has noted the findings made by the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources from its review of the tragic road accident and its assessment of how to avoid a recurrence. The Ministry has determined that there were certain breaches by Maxam in its operations and has imposed a fine of US$1 million on the company.”

“None of these breaches was the cause of the tragic road accident and all of them relate to the transport carried out by Arthaans Logistics. Based on a different interpretation of the applicable regulations, we believe that Maxam has not committed any of those breaches,” Maxam in its statement dated February 8, insisted.

But the Lands and Natural Resources Minister in Parliament today, contended that Maxam Company Limited which outsourced the transportation of the explosives was responsible for breaches, due to the principle of vicarious liability because it did not ensure that its agent complied with the regulations.

Responding to the question on whether the report of the three-member committee will be published, Samuel Jinapor argued that it will be more prudent to make public the report by the Prof. Amankwah committee which addresses the teething challenges in the mining sector.

“I’m saying it's a better judgment to publish the report of this Committee [Prof. Amankwa Committee] which is conducting broader investigations. It is the considered view of the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources that it will be more useful to publish the report of the Health and Safety Committee of Inquiry, which has a broader mandate and whose recommendations are geared towards the reformation of the mining sector,” Mr. Jinapor explained.

The Ministry on February 7, inaugurated a five-member Health and Safety Committee chaired by a Minerals Engineer and Vice-Chancellor of the Paa Grant University of Mines and Technology, Tarkwa (UmaT), Prof. Richard Amankwah.

He noted that the mandate of the Health and Safety Committee is to “review the entire health and safety regime of the mining industry and make recommendations to government for legislative, policy and other reforms.”