In pursuit of Jubilee - A story in the continuum of oil exploration in Ghana

Situated in the centre of planet Earth – rotating on an axis at the heart of the Meridian and the Equator – Ghana is truly God’s own country. We have almost everything, including two of the most precious minerals known to mankind: diamonds and gold. Toss in the lush tropical and savanna belts and rivers, and one would see the great agricultural potential of the country. In addition to all this abundance, oil has been added to Ghana’s prospects. Ghana is not a nation to be pitied at all.

With a seriously planned protection of the nation’s lush natural environment as a key consideration in development, there will be enough to sustain the population for years to come.

So why do people look up passively into the skies wishing dreams to happen by themselves from heaven? Why the loud prayers and disturbing tongues with the childish intent to eradicate poverty and acquire the good things in life, for free? Won’t it be more realistic to explore this very earth to find what God — in His infinite benevolence — has endowed this wonderful country with? Isn’t a bird in the hand worth two in the skies?

A book for posterity

The American novelist, Arthur Miller’s famous remark, “The world is an oyster, but you don’t crack it open on a mattress” is a most appropriate introduction to the man George Yaw Owusu, the author of the new book, “In Pursuit of Jubilee: A true story of the first major oil discovery in Ghana”.

In an important respect, Mr Owusu needs to be applauded. How many African leaders, government officials and businessmen have shared their motivation, challenges and working experiences for posterity? It’s as if, one, they have something to hide, or two, they are ashamed of their stewardship. Except for the very few in the fashion of Osagyefo Dr Kwame Nkrumah — who recounted his travails from the cradle to the grave — most died burying their corpses and life experiences into the dust with them, leaving nothing for posterity to appreciate and learn from.

George Yaw Owusu

Mr Owusu was born in Ashanti New Town (Ash Town) in Kumasi in 1949. He graduated from Wesley College as a teacher in 1969, and taught in the primary school. In 1974, he left for the United States where he graduated with a degree in Agribusiness from Illinois State University. He started off at a Montgomery Ward department store in Pasadena, California. In 1988, he took a better job at ARCO Chemical Plant in Channelview, Texas, and later at Eltex another petrochemical company.  

In social circles, he was once crowned “the Asantefuohene” of Houston. He was to move on in 1998 to join Shell Oil as an Environmental Representative.
With the visit of President J.A. Kufuor in Houston in 2000, and tasking Ghanaians there to consider companies for oil exploration in Ghana, Mr Owusu took the task at heart feeling that he “was about to take the wildest ride a man could ever imagine.”

Mr Owusu has a story to tell; and it’s not all kosher. His first setback was when he was “kicked out of a deal [he] had been instrumental in helping put together” by Vanco, an oil company he was expecting to make him the Country Manager in Ghana.  

At another time with another company, Ennex Oil, after a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) had been signed with the government, a key player backed out saying, he was unwilling “to spend that kind of money to drill these wells” in Ghana.

Ghana strikes oil

Mr Owusu’s resilience is noteworthy. In a chapter, “Regroup”, Mr Owusu wrote, “I was driven. Four letter words like ‘quit’ weren’t in my vocabulary. I set out to give it one more shot.” He was to meet one Jim Musselman and his Kosmos team and developed a business relationship.

In 2004, he prepared to move to Ghana “to begin my new position as the Country Manager for EO Group/Kosmos Energy partnership.” In this new role, he quipped, “I was working 60 hours per week. And I loved it.”

In June 2007, oil was discovered “in the West Cape Three Points (WCTP) block, it was located just off the continental shelf, approximately 36 miles off the southwest coast of Ghana.” President Kufour was to be told by the Kosmos team, “Mr President, Ghana has oil. We have made a significant discovery of high grade, commercial quality crude oil.”

The elections on December 7, 2008, was to usher in a new government. At one point, he said, “25 criminal charges” were filed against him with instruction to seize his assets. Kosmos decided to sell their stake to ExxonMobil, and as Mr Owusu put it, “they may have thought that if they dumped me, it might somehow soften the anger from the government and help resolve that issue.”

On being cleared

When he was cleared by the U.S. government, he noted, with emotion: “It was almost as if Ghana was determined to make the anonymous adage a national motto. No good deed goes unpunished … All I knew was that I loved Ghana. I was born there, raised there, educated there. I had family there. I owned land there. Ghana was in my soul. She was my roots. My family’s blood was deep in her soil.”

Asked if it was all worth it, he said, “It took its toll on me and my family … And to all those who stood against me [who] tried to jail me … I harbour no ill will. For there is an old saying … Success is the best revenge.”  

Mr Owusu’s foundation is involved in healthcare and education in Ghana.

The book will be launched at the Mövenpick Ambassador Hotel, Accra, on Thursday, June 22, 2017 at 5 p.m.

Email: anishaffar@gmail.com
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