Chairman of the Board of Mining and Building Contractors says it will amount to corporate betrayal should mining giant, AngloGold Ashanti (AGA) go ahead to abrogate its nearly 90-year-old contract with its key service provider. A group calling itself “Alliance for the Survival of Obuasi” which first brought the issue to the fore is threatening industrial chaos in Obuasi if AngloGold goes ahead to abrogate the contract arguing that the economy of the town will collapse and thousands of lives adversely affected. Edward Kwasi Akuoko, an Assemblyman in the area who doubles as spokesperson for the group tells Joy Business more than 1,300 workers of MBC risk losing jobs. “Already Anglogold is crying foul that there are a lot of galamsey activities in Obuasi. Now these people do not have any mining skill that they have. So once you retrench them definitely most of them will find it more convenient to go into galamsey or armed robbery or any other thing than to find a more respectable job to do,” he said. He warned that the workers will stage a massive demonstration which could destabilise the activities of Anglogold if it fails to heed their call. The Board Chair of MBC and former Presidential Adviser P. V. Obeng tells Joy Business though the company is yet to receive an official position from AngloGold, there is every indication that the contract will not be renewed. Mr Obeng says but for the existence of MBC and their commitment to hard work, the activities of Anglogold would have come to a complete halt. He says there are various interests in this controversy and suggested a cautious approach to solving the problem. Officials of AngloGold Ashanti meanwhile say it is early days yet for anyone to assume that the contract with MBC will be abrogated. General Manager in Charge of Public Affairs, John Owusu tells Joy Business the parties are still in negotiations. A statement issued by the AGA says it is still involved in negotiation with MBC and hoped the negotiations will be done with the utmost confidentiality it deserves. “Any decision and actions will be aimed at securing a successful future for the mine, taking account of the best interests of shareholders, employees of AGA and MBC, the community and the country,” the statement said. Source: Joy Business/Myjoyonline.com/Ghana