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    Natural Resource Law

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    Amba Cobbah
    Article 257(6) of Ghana's constitution states that all minerals belong to the people of Ghana, with the president holding them in trust. [1] There are different types of trusts, including enforceable trusts that can be enforced in court. [2] However, Ghanaian courts have found the trust created by article 257(6) to be nominal and unenforceable. [3] Specifically, in two cases the courts determined that the trust obligation places a duty on the government to act in good faith, but individual citizens cannot enforce this trust relationship in court. [3]

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    Natural Resource Law

    Uploaded by

    Amba Cobbah
    48 views2 pages
    Article 257(6) of Ghana's constitution states that all minerals belong to the people of Ghana, with the president holding them in trust. [1] There are different types of trusts, including enforceable trusts that can be enforced in court. [2] However, Ghanaian courts have found the trust created by article 257(6) to be nominal and unenforceable. [3] Specifically, in two cases the courts determined that the trust obligation places a duty on the government to act in good faith, but individual citizens cannot enforce this trust relationship in court. [3]

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    Article 257(6) of Ghana's constitution states that all minerals belong to the people of Ghana, with the president holding them in trust. [1] There are different types of trusts, including enforceable trusts that can be enforced in court. [2] However, Ghanaian courts have found the trust created by article 257(6) to be nominal and unenforceable. [3] Specifically, in two cases the courts determined that the trust obligation places a duty on the government to act in good faith, but individual citizens cannot enforce this trust relationship in court. [3]

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    48 views2 pages

    Natural Resource Law

    Uploaded by

    Amba Cobbah
    Article 257(6) of Ghana's constitution states that all minerals belong to the people of Ghana, with the president holding them in trust. [1] There are different types of trusts, including enforceable trusts that can be enforced in court. [2] However, Ghanaian courts have found the trust created by article 257(6) to be nominal and unenforceable. [3] Specifically, in two cases the courts determined that the trust obligation places a duty on the government to act in good faith, but individual citizens cannot enforce this trust relationship in court. [3]

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    of 2

    222018992

    Level 200 (Day)


    Natural Resources Law

    Question- Whether article 257(6) creates an enforceable trust.

    There are different forms of trust namely, true trust which is trust
    enforceable by the court, unenforceable trust which is a trust that is valid
    but cannot be directly enforced by a beneficiary, enforceable trust which is
    a valid trust that conforms with all requirements. Article 257(6) states that
    ‘Every mineral in its natural state in, under or upon any land in Ghana,
    rivers, streams, water courses throughout Ghana, the exclusive economic
    zone and any area covered by the territorial sea or continental shelf is the
    property of the Republic of Ghana and shall be vested in the President on
    behalf of, and in trust for the people of Ghana.’
    This provision brings into effect the nature of a contract under
    seal,whichexists between the citizens and the president as a trustee. What
    then is a trust? A trust can be defined as the imposition of an equitable
    obligation on a person who becomes a legal owner of the property or the
    trustee. It requires the person to act in good conscience when dealing with
    the property in favor of the beneficiary. It also refers to a fiduciary
    relationship between a trustee and a beneficiary where property is heldby
    oneparty for the benefit of another party. A trust iscreated by the owner,
    also calledthe grantor or settlor who transfers property to a trustee.The
    trustee holds thatproperty for the trust’s beneficiaries.The trust relationship
    created between the president and the people of Ghana in the mineral
    ownership has been determined as nominal and, therefore, not justiciable.
    The assertion made above is explained in the case of Adjaye and
    others v Attorney General, it was held according to Aryeetey J that article
    257(6) cannot be used as grounds for the notion that shares held by the
    government in the second defendant corporation are held in trust for the
    people of Ghana. Furthermore, in the case of Tito v Waddell and others, it
    was held that the word ‘trust’ with regards to the crown did not create a
    trust enforceable by the courts. The trust created is centered on the
    governmental obligation to keep the property in good conscience which is
    unenforceable in court. Therefore, the plaintiff can not base his claim on
    the existence of a trust relationship, he must also show its enforceability. If
    the trust consists of just a governmental or presidential obligation, that
    trust relationship is unenforceable.
    Citizens' lack of power to question the president in the exercise
    of mineral rights in court is a drawback for the principles of
    constitutionalism, separation of powers, rule of law, judicial review,
    administrative justice and good governance generally. It also undermines
    the power given to the people in article 1 of the 1992 constitution.

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