The Chief of Segyemase, Kyebi in the Eastern Region, Barima Okoping Botuo Danquah I, has strongly charged his colleague chiefs and the government to help end illegal mining, popular known as ‘galamsey’ now.
Barima Okupin Botuo Danquah wants the chiefs to use their power to stop illegal miners.
The chief is angry about the destruction of the Atewa forest which he says is affecting the health and livelihood of his people.
He cautioned that if illegal miners do not stop destroying the forests, they will continue to die since the ancestors themselves are angry with them.
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“It’s true that God created the lands but there are spirits on it, a lot of people have died recently and they quietly pick them up to be buried, of course the ancestors are angry,” he noted.
Matilda Asante, a native of Segyemase says the activities of illegal mining is making their lives miserable.
“One thing is that when they dig the pits, they do not cover them up and that’s very dangerous when we go to the farm with our kids.”
“Also, we don’t get water to drink when we go to the farm. Previously, we would fetch water from the river from the forest, but the water is so dirty now that we can no more drink from it, unless we buy our own packs of water to the farm.”
“The galamsey has also bred mosquitoes in the community which was previously not the case here,” she said.
Emmanuel Akyeanor Tabi, also a resident of Segyemase, laments that all efforts to get the government’s attention to the problem have yielded no results.
“The reason we are not able to eradicate the problem is because of the powerful people behind this operation. You arrest them and the next thing you hear is that they have been released, nothing happens to them,” he said.
The Chief is also worried that his people are not benefiting from the illegal mining but are the ones mostly affected in terms of health.
“Small diseases and rashes, formerly there were no mosquitoes in my community but now there are, all because they have destroyed the trees and lands and it’s very painful,” he said.
CEO of the Centre for Social Impact Studies, Richard Ellimah says the country’s biggest casualty of illegal mining are the forest reserves.
For him, sustainable mining and the prevention of the use of cyanides are key to dealing with the problem.
Prof. Abdul -Gafaru Abdulai of the Public Administration Department of the University of Ghana Business School, said until politicians see reason to end illegal mining the nation will not be able to achieve any significant impact.
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