By Isha S. Mansaray
Freetown, Sierra Leone, August 25, 2025– Ex Workers of Koidu Limited have jointly issued a press release strongly rejecting a proposed negotiations to be carried out by their former employer, Koidu Limited, and the Government of Sierra Leone.
This comes in direct response to an earlier public publication conveyed by Koidu Limited, dated August 18th, 2025. In which, the company disclosed that it had engaged London-based law firm Mishcon de Reya LLP to negotiate with the Sierra Leonean government over allegations of breach of the its mining lease.
The former employees explicitly states that the pending lawsuit against Koidu Limited, involving USD $49,085,147.63 (Forty-Nine Million, Eighty-Five Thousand, One Hundred Forty-Seven United States Dollars and Sixty-Three Cents) and additional interests and damages, has nothing to do with the government of Sierra Leone. As such, presumptuous for the government of Sierra Leone to negotiate on their behalf.
The workers’ states; “We wish to make it abundantly clear that this was an industrial relation issue between the employees and Koidu Limited which has nothing to do with the Government of Sierra Leone.”
Emphasizing on their standpoint, they further added “government has no authority to negotiate on behalf of the former employees”. They also emphatically asserted that all negotiations must be conducted exclusively through the their solicitors.
The Ex-Workers further highlights two fundamental issues within the lawsuit at the High Court of Sierra Leone.
- Whether Koidu Limited can unilaterally determine and fix the exchange rate of the United States Dollar in Sierra Leone, contrary to the Bank of Sierra Leone Act (No. 5 of 2019, as amended);
- Whether employees who resigned from Koidu Limited a month prior to the en masse dismissal are entitled to their end-of-service benefits, pursuant to the Employment Act (No. 15 of 2023).
The Ex-Workers conclude that they have pursued further lawsuit, instructing their solicitors to issued additional claims of human rights violations against the company.
