IMANI Africa’s Honourary Vice President, Bright Simons, has questioned why the government would launch a gold refinery with much fanfare when it is struggling to secure gold for refining.

This comes after the Vice President and the 2024 flagbearer of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, inaugurated Royal Gold Ghana Limited gold refinery aimed at enhancing value addition in Ghana's mining sector.

The government described the moment as destiny-changing.

Related: Bawumia commissions Royal Gold Ghana Limited refinery to boost value addition

However, in his latest epistle titled “The strange case of Ghana “first” gold refinery & its “broke” investor”, Mr Simons called out government for misinforming the citizenry when it launched a facility that it called, “Ghana’s first commercial gold refinery”.

He wondered the rationale behind the extensive public relations efforts surrounding the project.

A refinery, which he discovered is smaller and less advanced than some already operational in the country, has been touted by officials as a ground-breaking initiative.

“Why would the government launch a refinery smaller and less sophisticated than some refineries already operational in the country, and struggling to get gold to refine, with such fanfare?” he quizzed.

He questioned why resources have been invested in public relations to create the impression that the project is transformative for the country.

Related: The strange case of Ghana “first” gold refinery & its “broke” investor

One possible explanation, Mr Simons believed is due to the upcoming general elections scheduled for December 7, 2024.

He suggested that the governing party may be attempting to create a "feel-good" narrative for the electorate.

“The innocuous answer is that Ghana is on the brink of general elections on 7th December 2024, and the ruling party just wanted a nice feel-good story for the electorate,” a portion of his publication read.

Mr Simons also offered a more optimistic interpretation, pointing out that the refinery has 20% state ownership and is part of a direct joint venture with the state-owned Precious Minerals Marketing Company (PMMC).

The refinery has been positioned to process local gold purchased by the Bank of Ghana to boost the country's reserves.

“An even more optimistic answer is that this refinery has 20% state ownership, is in a direct joint venture partnership with state-owned PMMC, and has been positioned to refine local gold purchased by the Bank of Ghana to boost its reserves. Hence, it is no ordinary commercial refinery,” he explained.

However, despite these explanations, Mr Simons argues that the way the project was presented raises further questions.

“One could excuse the outright falsity in the way the project was presented if the above explanations carry weight, except that they actually raise more intriguing questions," he said, leaving the public to ponder the true intentions behind the government's PR campaign.