&w=64&q=75)
Ashanti Regional Minister, Dr Frank Amoakohene, has issued a strict two-week deadline for illegal miners in the region to cease all activities in forest reserves and water bodies or face legal consequences.
The directive is part of the government’s intensified efforts to combat illegal mining, known locally as galamsey, which has caused severe pollution and destruction of natural resources.
Addressing a news conference on Thursday, 6th February, Dr Amoakohene reaffirmed his commitment to tackling the issue, warning:
If you are mining within the forest reserves and you don't want to be on the bad side of the law, you have two weeks to vacate or to leave those spaces. Again, the other area had to do with our water bodies. So we are also giving them two weeks.
He further announced the deployment of a task force to enforce the directive, stating:
If you have any investment in these illegal activities, polluting our water bodies and destroying the environment, you have two weeks to leave. A team will be dispatched to restore normalcy in the mining sector.
Dr Amoakohene also revealed ongoing discussions with other regional ministers to implement a coordinated approach in protecting shared water resources.
we also realised that most of the rivers have their paths through different or other regions. I'm working together with the other regional ministers who equally share most of the tributaries of the river, so that we can be holistic in our approach towards fighting this galamsey issue.
His statement follows a recent directive from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), issued on 28th January, instructing the immediate cessation of all illegal mining on water bodies nationwide. EPA Acting Chief Executive Officer, Professor Nana Ama Browne Klutse, emphasised that the directive applies to both small- and large-scale mining activities.