Businessman Ibrahim Mahama and his company, Engineers & Planners, have filed a defamation lawsuit against Bright Simons. They are demanding GHS10 million in damages, a public apology, and a retraction of the article published on April 19, 2025.
Filed at the High Court in Accra, the suit stems from an article Simons posted on his website and social media titled “Ghana Provides a Lesson in How Not to Nationalise a Gold Mine.” Simons is the honorary vice president of the policy think tank IMANI Africa.
In their statement of claim dated May 28, 2025, Mahama and his company argue that the article falsely suggests Engineers & Planners is financially troubled. They also say it implies the company received special treatment in government mining decisions due to Mahama’s family ties to President John Dramani Mahama.
The plaintiffs further claim that Simons’ article accuses them of potentially causing financial harm and conflicts of interest within the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources.
Mahama states that these allegations have damaged his personal and business reputation, affecting his relationships with partners, regulators, and financiers.
He and Engineers & Planners are asking the court to compel Simons to retract the article, issue an unqualified apology, and publish the apology on all platforms where the original article appeared. They also want six full-page apologies published in the Daily Graphic newspaper.
