Minerals Commission slams Police over galamsey fight

The Minerals Commission has raised concerns over the perceived inaction of the police in combating illegal mining activities.

The Commission claims that illegal mining is ongoing directly behind the Anyinam Police Station, with no intervention from the security forces.

It further emphasised that all forms of mining in water bodies are illegal, yet no arrests have been made by the police.

Speaking before the Government Assurances Committee of Parliament on Monday, October 7, the Chief Executive Officer of the Minerals Commission, Martin Ayisi, expressed his dissatisfaction with the situation, urging for more proactive measures from the police to address the issue.

“Anybody who gets into the river bodies is involved in an illegality. If someone gets into the rivers, they go at night, like 10: pm, or 11: pm there, and then by 4:am, they fold up.

“Once the Minerals Commission reports to the appropriate security agencies that people are working at night, our job ends there. So, I struggle a little bit. Let me use the Konongo as an example, so the District Officer of Minerals Commission goes around to monitor operations, that is his job, and ensure that those who have been licensed follow the law, and some do breach… And he chanced upon an activity where people were mining.

“There are two things that he will do, he will report to the District Assembly and say he has found this activity which is close to the road.

“What the District Assembly has to do is to organise the security forces to stop the activity ahead of DISEC. We have reported several times that people are mining behind the Anyinam Police Station which we have not permitted. How come the police are not taking action.”