Workers at the Volta Aluminium Company (VALCO) have urged President John Dramani Mahama to stop what they describe as a planned sale of the state-owned aluminium smelter, warning that the move could threaten jobs, weaken Ghana’s industrial ambitions and deprive the country of a strategic national asset.

The workers on Monday (27 July), staged a protest to drum home their demands.

In a petition signed by General Secretary of the Industrial and Commercial workers’ Union (ICU) Morgan Ayawine, the workers said it had received credible information that the Ghana Integrated Aluminium Development Corporation (GIADEC) intends to transfer a 70 percent equity stake in VALCO to Arch Holdings Consortium.

The union said the proposed transaction would effectively hand over the management and operations of the company to a private investor despite what it described as sustained opposition from workers.

It argued that VALCO has made significant operational progress in recent years following investments by the state, management, the board and employees, making the proposed transfer unjustifiable.

“The State and the workforce have invested enormous resources, expertise and dedication in restoring VALCO to its current state of progress,” the petition said, adding that it would be unacceptable to relinquish control of the company just as those efforts were beginning to yield results.

The union warned that transferring a controlling stake to a private investor could result in job losses, reduced workers’ welfare and financial consequences for both employees and the state.

It also argued that the proposed sale could undermine Ghana’s Integrated Aluminium Industry and compromise the country’s long-term strategic interests.

The workers questioned the rationale for pursuing the transaction, noting that the Minister for Lands and Natural Resources had recently highlighted improvements in VALCO’s operations.

Appealing directly to President Mahama, the union cited his May Day address in Koforidua, during which he urged organised labour to speak out against actions that could undermine state-owned enterprises and pledged to revive struggling public institutions.

The union said the President’s remarks reflected his commitment to protecting public enterprises and expressed hope that he would intervene to halt the proposed transaction.

It warned that if its concerns are not addressed promptly, it would consult its governing structures to determine its next course of action, which it said could take on “a national character” in defence of VALCO and Ghana’s strategic interests.

The petition also appealed to organised labour, civil society organisations, professional bodies and the wider public to support efforts to keep VALCO under state ownership.