The Former District Chief Executive for the Tano North District in the Ahafo Region under the erstwhile Mahama administration, has waded into the topical issue of public interest, regarding the activities of galamsey in our water bodies.
The government put together a two-day National Consultative Dialogue on Small-Scale Mining involving about 14 stakeholders, including former ministers of Lands and Natural Resources, members of the Council of State, members of the National House of Chiefs, heads of security agencies, actors in the mining industry and members of the Small-Scale Miners Association to develop a roadmap.
A communiqué was issued at the end of this National Consultative Dialogue on Small Scale Mining which was held from 14th to 15th April 2021 at the Accra International Conference Centre.
Recently, the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, at a conference, underscored the need for stakeholders to be truthful in the fight against illegal small-scale mining in the country.
Otumfuo Osei-Tutu said government should muster the courage to call out people who are involved in the act of illegal mining since they are known.
“I told them that if you are not truthful, we will keep deceiving ourselves and be organizing conferences such as this,” he said.
Speaking on these worrying activities on Edwumapa 98.9 Fm, a local radio station in Sunyani on Tuesday, May 18, 2021 the Former DCE and the Regional Communications Officer for the NDC in the Ahafo Region, suggested that galamseyers who are caught must be made to drink from the polluted water bodies everyday for them to know how their activities affect other innocent people along the water bodies who directly depend on these water bodies for their activities, including drinking.
The Former DCE, Hon Apraku Lartey, expressed worry on the high rate at which our water bodies are constantly being polluted through the activities of galamsey in the country and urged the government to be bold to deal with his Executives who are actively involved in the galamsey enterprise.
”In my time as the DCE, i had to put in strict measures to ensure that people who embarked on galamsey activities around River Adongo were flushed out even though they had constructed a river bank away from the river. I did so because their waste water move to pollute River Adongo during the raining season”.
