Gold  Mining  War Looms In Denkyira- Bremang 

The fury of the farmers reached its height when workers of PMGL on Monday, March 15, 2022, began drilling and exploration wo s  on farmland belonging to a family of six.

The family of six include mother Madam Agnes Arkoh (aka Ama Asantewaa) and father, Mr. Kwadwo Konadu and their four daughters Asantewaa) and her daughters: Abena Fosua, a lactating mother, Abena Darkuaa, and Akosua Nimo, whose farmland is at the center of this latest incident.

The anger of the residents, most of whom are cocoa farmers whose farmlandsere being taken for mining activities, follows brutalities by the workers of the Adio-Mabas Ghana Limited and tacit support of police officers from Diaso Police Station on a mother and her three daughters of which one is breastfeeding a 10-month-old baby.

       

The Soireenews.com gathered that the four were arrested by the police at Diaso and detained for several hours on the said Tuesday.

Shockingly, the 10-month-old baby girl of Abena Fosua was not spared by the police. The baby was detained for one-and-a-half hours, a situation that left the child at the mercy of mosquito bites. 

However, as of the time of filing this report, this news portal learned that the child has been seriously taken ill. 

Narrating their ordeal via a telephone call to Soireenews.com, Madam Agnes Arkoh said on Tuesday, March 15, 2022, she and her three daughters (Abena Fosua, Eno Nimo, and Abena Darkuaa) were arrested and detained till the morning of Wednesday, March 16, 2022, for no apparent reason.

She alleged that their arrest was on the orders of management of Adio-Mabas Ghana Limited and Perseus Mining Ghana Limited (PMGL) who are prospecting for gold in Denkyira Breman.

She said in the course of the attack by workers of the two companies, one of her daughters Eno Nimo fell on a sharp cutlass which inflicted serious wounds on her body.

Madam Agnes Arkoh noted that Eno Nimo was given a police health form to go for medical treatment at the Dominase Hospital. 

The police health form was given to her daughter after she had been granted police inquiry bail together, she told Soireenews.com.

Madam Agnes Arkoh told Soireenews.com that the incident happened after they questioned workers of the two companies on why they were drilling parts of their farmland which was not part of the companies' gold mining concession.

This was at a time Madam Agnes Arkoh together with her daughters had gone to their farmland to plant cassava sticks. 

She continued that their presence on their farmland angered the workers at the site who allegedly used brute force to enter the farm and started destroying their crops indiscriminately.

“We (Madam Arkoh and her daughters) resisted the workers who later got more furious and manhandled and later reported us to the police at Diaso,” she narrated.

According to Madam Agnes Arkoh, following the police report by the workers of the two companies, they were arrested around 5:00 p.m., on Tuesday, March 15, 2022,

“We were detained till Wednesday, March 16, 2022, including one of my daughters who is breasting a 10-month-old baby,” she said. 

Meanwhile, information available to this paper indicates that Madam Agnes Arkoh and her daughters are not the only farmers who have suffered alleged brutalities at the hands of the two mining companies.

Scores of farmers in Denkyira Breman who this reporter spoke to accused workers of the gold mining companies of using force to protect the drilling and exploration works of their workers

The farmers pointed out that there were indications the workers, with the tacit support of the police in Diaso and Dunkwa Police Division, were bent on going ahead with their exploration activities without the consent of the farmers, contrary to mining and exploration rules of engagement.

"We have not entered into any agreement with the so-called Adio-Mabas Ghana Limited or Perseus Mining Ghana Limited who are currently claiming to be the concession owners of our farmlands that offer us a reliable source of livelihood.

“…We the people in Breman are farmers who engage in the production of food crops such as maize, cocoyam, cassava, and cocoa. But what we are seeing is that workers of Perseus Mining Ghana Limited forcibly enter our farmlands and start constructing roads through our lands to drill and explore our lands for gold which activities are threatening our natural resources and vast arable lands,” they indicated

"In Breman, cocoa farming is our business. We can finance our children's education from the sale of cocoa and cash crops like oil palm. We are an agrarian community and we want to remain as farmers, hence Breman opposes gold mining even if the company is issued with the necessary mining permit," they asserted.

Consequently, the farmers called on President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to intervene in the ongoing exploration activities of Perseus Mining Ghana Company Limited which were destroying peoples’ farms.

They also appealed to the Inspector General Police (IGP), Dr. George Akuffo Damper, to immediately call to order police officers at Diaso Police Station and the Dunkwa Divisional Police Commander, accusing the police officers of the two police stations of imposing the company on them.

They cited a recent threat issued on them by a senior police officer after the officer had invited them to Dunkwa Divisional Police Station for a meeting to find out about their response to the exploration activities being carried out by the company on their farmlands at Breman.

At the said meeting, the farmers stated that the police officer made it clear to them by asserting that "we would find every means and ways to ensure that the company mines gold on your farmlands even when you [the farmers and the residents] do not agree with the company."

They noted that the company brushed aside their decision to the effect that they were not ready to give out their only fertile agricultural lands to them to mine gold. 

Instead, the company, through some clandestine means, entered into their lands and started doing exploration. They stated that the action of the company was completely a breach of the provision of the Free Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC) under the Minerals and Mining Act, 2006 (Act 703).

"We are saying that we are not ready to give our lands to any mining company to mine gold. Although this company, together with one Tweneboah Kwabena, have entered into our farmlands to prospect for gold, we the majority of Breman farmers are saying a big no to any gold mining activities,” they stressed

However, when Soireenews.com reached via mobile phone the Senior Community Relations Officer of Perseus Mining Ghana Company Limited, Mr. Emmanuel Armah, confirmed the arrest of the four women, alleging that his outfit complained after their workers were attacked on-site while carrying out drilling and exploration works.

But he denied flatly the allegation that his company workers forcibly entered into the farmland of the farmers (four women), adding that they legally acquired concession.

According to Mr. Armah, his company’s activities did not cause any destruction to the crops on the farmland of the four women. He also denied that his company was using the police to harass farmers on their ancestors’ lands.

He explained that the land in question was part of his company’s concession which they legally acquired from Mr. Kwadwo Konadu, the husband of Madam Agnes Arkoh.

"I am aware that the land in question was a galamsey devastated area that the company wanted to carry its drilling and exploration works.

…Initially, the place was very muddy and it was difficult for the workers to use their excavators to even go there to work.”

"So we sought the consent of the husband of Madam Agnes Arkoh, Mr. Kwadwo Konadu and we dully paid compensation package to him which has given us the legal backing to enter into the said land to fill the muddy nature of the area before the excavators can even go there.

"We want to state that owner consent was sorted and that he has given the workers of the company authority to enter the land to do the work," Mr. Armah further explained.

He pointed out that in the cause of doing their work "l was informed that the man's wife came there on Monday, March 14, 2022, to confront the workers and even insulted the workers."

He said the following day after they were having a meeting and supposed to go and access the farm “we called the farmer via telephone but we didn't get him."

He said he was following up with the matter “then l overheard that on Tuesday, March 16, 2022, Madam Agnes Arkoh and two of her children went to the site to assault our people.” 

"Apparently what happened was that the woman and her children had planted cassava sticks at where they wanted to fill with the materials for the excavators to have access to the land to do drilling works. 

…so the following day when our workers went to the land and saw what the woman and her children had come to do (planted cassava sticks. Our workers were astonished and said that this is not possible so they had to remove the cassava sticks because the consent of the owner of the farm had already been given and had also given the green light to the company to enter into his land to carry out drilling works."

"So in the cause of removing the cassava sticks on the land, l don't know whether the woman and her children were around or not and they came to attack the workers of the company that is the information l have," Mr. Armah said.

On the issue of one of the women falling on a cutlass, he replied: “l don't know the details."

Mr. Armah suggested to this reporter to visit the site and ascertain for himself the facts of the matter.

A security officer of Adio-Mabas Ghana Limited, Mr. Habib Anmed, also refuted the claim that their workers assaulted Madam Agnes Arkoh and her three children.

Rather, he blamed the woman and her children for doing wrong things, alleging that they even slapped Mr. Solomon Quaye and Mr. Yaw Boadi who are both workers on the day the incident happened.

He said his company cannot enter into farmlands without the consent of the owners of the lands.

Interestingly when soireenews.com called Mr. Kwadwo Konadu (the husband of Madam Agnes Arkoh,) via phone, he debunked the allegation that he was consulted or paid any compensation on the land by the company.

"I swear my Lord that none of the management of the company has asked for my consent before entering into my land and that what Mr. Emmanuel Armah is saying l don't even know anything about it," he emphasized.