– stakeholders peeved by “silence”

By Alva Solomon
SEVERAL Canadian- Guyanese are up in arms over what they say is the “silence” of Mahdia Gold Corporation, a Canadian medium-scale mining company which has been mining at the Omai goldfields in Region Eight.David Bending, a director and the company’s Chief Exploration Geologist, in response to an email told this newspaper that the company is undergoing a re-organisation period.
“We recognise that some changes are necessary to put the company on track and will work to address their concerns, which are consistent with our concerns. I cannot disclose the details at this time.”
Many Canadian-Guyanese are said to be investors in the company.
Cambior Inc , Omai’s parent company, ceased operations at the site after mining from 1993 until 2005. Mahdia Gold conducted an analysis of the site and its reports stated that there was still gold potential at the mines. It then commenced activity at the site after providing shareholders with information on its plans.
However since its last update in July 2015 on its website, Mahdia Gold has been silent.
Sources have reported that shareholders, including those overseas, are aware that alluvial mining has been taking place in the form of leases to small miners at the Omai mines.
“Who is receiving all the money from the alluvial mining from a company that is public and owned by shareholders, many of whom are Guyanese?”, one stakeholder asked, preferring to remain anonymous.
He said that many do not know Don Gordon, the person listed as CEO of the company and the author of the company’s last newsletter.
This newspaper was provided with a contact number for the company, but calls to the numbers have been unsuccessful.
The person who encouraged Canadian- Guyanese to invest in the company reportedly resigned from the company in 2013, but he agreed to remain on the board as well as to act in the capacity of liaison with the government here.
This newspaper visited the mining operations of the company at Omai in January, when Minister of Natural Resources Raphael Trotman and Junior Minister, Simona Broomes travelled there on a fact- finding mission.
The team interacted with small miners at the site, known as the “Omai Mill” and many of them expressed concern.
The miners have been working the site under an arrangement with the company, in which they pay rental fees.
The miners have been operating illegally at the site and a Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) official told this newspaper at the site that there are an estimated five small operations at the site with 15 structures set up as homes and shops.
Edwin Isaacs, a small miner reported to the team that two weeks prior, his employees were working in the pits when security personnel reportedly attached to Mahdia Gold allegedly broke down the structure holding his sluice box. He said the men who are attached to the entity as security employees pumped bullets into the sluice boxes and hoses as they demanded payments. Minister Broomes expressed dissatisfaction as this information was mentioned.
The miners told the team that they are required to pay 20 % of their production to the mining company, a sum they opposed, noting that the mining regulations have set the figure at no more than 10 per cent. The miners reported that the security personnel did not provide any documentation to support their claims.
Mahdia Gold in its last report in July 2015 stated that the company will be increasing security at the Omai site at additional costs, but that this was necessary to maximise production, field security and employee safety. It stated that it was diligently working to increase its gold production in 2015 and a target of 1,000 ounces per month from alluvial operations has been set by the company.
In addition to the Omai project, the company’s website stated that it is also engaged in mining at Tiger River, near the Omai site, as well as at White Creek in the North -West District.