The Adankronohene of Kade, in the Kwaebibibrem Municipal Assembly of the Eastern Region, Osaberima Sarpong Kumankuma II, has called on President John Dramani Mahama, the Commander-in-Chief of the Ghana Armed Forces, to come to their aid as soon as possible to stop the galamseyers operating in the area.
According to him, Galamsey is swallowing his community despite making numerous complaints about the situation, but no one has come to their rescue.
He is therefore pleading with the President to step in and use his veto powers to halt the operations in order to protect their lands and water reserves for future generations.
Osaberima Sarpong Kumankuma II further stated that the reason the menace is escalating in his community is that the galamseyers are now mining inside the Birem River, causing damage to their lands, and urgent action is needed.
The Adankronohene urged the Government to stop giving concessions to miners in Accra to come to their communities, engage in illegal mining activities, and destroy their lands and water bodies.
Osaberima Kumankuma II then suggested to President John Mahama that, for the miners to embark on responsible mining, traditional rulers should be involved in the concession process to enable them to monitor and regulate the activities to ensure they do what is expected. Otherwise, they will continue to act with impunity and disrespect traditional authority.
Osaberima Kumankuma recalled that in 2010, during the tenure of the late former President Atta Mills, illegal mining activities on the Birem River led to severe flooding in the area, destroying lives and property.
He cited that due to the nature of the flooding, the late President Atta Mills and his entourage had to use live boats to cross before they could assess the situation, and it was an eyesore.
Drawing parallels with the current situation, he admonished the Government to treat the matter with utmost urgency and take concrete actions to address the devastating impact of illegal mining in the area.
Osaberima Kumankuma II warned that if the situation remains unchecked, history will repeat itself, and the community will continue to suffer dire consequences from these galamsey terrorists.
Prior to the complaint, the Municipal Security Council (MUSEC), led by the Municipal Chief Executive (MCE) for Kwaebibibrem Municipal Assembly, Emmanuel Kofi Nti, conducted a thorough assessment of the site to evaluate the extent of the damage and explore strategies for land reclamation.
The visit revealed that mining activities had severely impacted the Birem River, necessitating immediate reclamation efforts to restore its natural flow and prevent flooding in the area.
In response, the MCE issued a direct warning to the miners, especially GCD Company Limited, ordering them to reclaim the land within 4 working days.
“If they remain adamant about these directives, they will be arrested and arraigned before the court, and if they are arrested we don’t want to want to see anybody begging on their behalf to be released because people are nation wreckers,” he said.
By// Kontihen Kofi Oboh.
Source// Obohnewsonline.com.
Obohnewsonline 