Sack Mireku Duker And Western Regional Minister Now!—Nzema Youths Appeal To Prez  Akufo-Addo

THE CALLS  have been made to President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to sack the Western Regional Minister, Kwabena Okyere Darko-Mensah and Deputy Minister of Lands and Natural Resources in charge of mines Honourable George Mireku Duker if he wants to succeed in the long unending fight against the illegal mining activities popularly known as galamsey.

The youths and opinion leaders of Nzemaland who made the foregoing call are from the Awulezo, Duale, Ablebo, Akango, Assuawah, Apansie, Hiawa, Wassa Akropong, Ankwanso, Esikuma, Asonua, Prestea, Huni-Valley including many other hamlets where these galamseyers, particularly foreigners had invaded to be doing brisk galamsey business in the full glare of local and state mining regulators.

According to them, these politicians to be held responsible because they have the capacity to fight those behind the pollution of the river Ankobra and other water bodies including the fertile lands or agricultural lands in these communities.

They noted that they we're hurt by the fast depletion of forest reserves and the pollution of river bodies in the Western Region also top officials of the Nzema East Municipal Assembly as aiding the illicit acts.

They pointed out that due to unregulated systems of these illicit acts in the aforesaid communities in the region by Mr Darko-Mensah and George Mireku Duker, all the policies they brought board on life formation of wardens and river guards to provide adequate security and protection at the various river bodies where illegal mining activities are believed to be taking place had also failed

The youths and opinion leaders, consequently dared President Akufo-Addo to conduct unannounced on-site visits to these communities and interviews the people in these aforementioned communities and he would hear wonderful things himself that really these illegal miners have overpowered the local authorities and state mining regulators in the region.

They stated that the recent claim by the Western Regional Minister and Mr Duker who doubles as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Tarkwa-Nsuaem Constituency to the effect that, their outfits have deployed river guards and wardens to monitor the activities of illegal miners on river bodies in the region was completely false.

They insisted that these are not true reflection on the grounds now as "we are expressing our concerns about the increased invasion of our lands by the locals and Chinese galamseyers."

They mentioned that the recent statement by the ministers in that regard is a face saving plot to create the impression to the President that they are working to help the government to flush out galamseyers on the water bodies and forest range reserves in the region.

They revealed that the District Chief Executives (DCEs) and members of the New Patriotic Party in the Western Region have taken over illegal mining activities in the region, the statement made by the residents has corroborated the current accused made by former President John Dramani Mahama against the DCEs and the members of the NPP.

The National Democratic Congress flagbearer
accused the DCEs, NPP members have taken over mining, destroying water bodies and environment.

He stated that the DCEs and NPP members have allocated all the available mining concessions to themselves.

“There are several concessions where mining is taking place, but it’s only the DCEs who are working on them for themselves. Apart from that, members of the NPP are the only ones who have taken over these concessions, and no one is stopping them.

"When we are voted into power, we will put in place systems that will curtail such things. They should not happen in this country. We need to protect our water bodies from being polluted. 

"Now water bodies in the south look comparatively muddy, and that should not be the case, so we will fight illegal mining and protect our land and water bodies,” he disclosed while addressing people in the Ashanti Region," former President Dramani Mahama noted.

He promised to establish district offices to address mining license applications and illegal mining operations.

However, the youths of Nzemaland pointed out that the DCEs and NPP officials have allocated all the available gold mining concessions in the region to the locals and Chinese illegal miners, something they described as very worrying, unlawful and criminal.

"These are some current records of mining activities in these areas so if we are saying that it is a high time for President Akufo-Addo to sack the two ministers for not doing their jobs effectively to help the government to fight illegal mining activities," the youths stressed.

According to the concerned youths of Nzemaland who made the foregoing calls on President Akufo-Addo, they would vote against the NPP in the 2024 general elections, if the President and the authority of the government appointees haven't listened to their calls to relieve the two top government appointees from their current positions.

"Our listening President Akufo-Addo, we will be happened that you are going to listen to our current concern we are expressing to you by way to include Mr Kwabena Okyere Darko-Mensah and George Mireku Duker to the ministers and government appointees to be reshuffled. This is because it has showed clearly that the two leading government appointees of the region are not doing their best to help the current government to fight against the illegal mining activities. 

They expressed worry on how Honourable
Duker and Western Regional disappointed the President in fighting against the illegal mining activities in the Western Region, saying that the illegal miners have overpowered the Ministers to invade the communities to carry their illicit activities.

According to the Nzema youths, the inability of the two to effectively enforce the existing mining regulatory laws have allowed these  galamseyers to invade "our agricultural fertile lands, who are destroying our water bodies and environment and that "we are appealing to President Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to sack Duker and Western Regional Minister for the peace to prevail in the Nzemaland."

"Because for the look of things we will one day take the law into our hands, looking at the increased nature of the destruction caused by these galamseyers, particularly the Chinese/foreigners to our lands and water bodies. 

"Truly we are giving the hint that very soon 
we may take the law into our hands," the youths of Gwira and Nzema lands stressed, threatening to vote against the NPP if the President fails to sack Duker and Western Regional Minister." 

"Our President should wake up from his slumber to ensure that these two appointees to be changed because the claim that they are helping the fighting against illegal miners is not true. Mr President kindly look at the current circumstances where the galamsey activities were on the rise in the areas such as Awulezo, Duale, Ablebo, Akango, Assuawah, Apansie, Hiawa, Wassa Akropong, Ankwanso, Esikuma, Asonua, Prestea, Huni-Valley including many other hamlets," they stated.

"We the young people and the opinion leaders in the Nzema lands are boiling with anger at their traditional authorities and the current top 
government officials. 

"What is even constituted our anger is how these traditional authorities and state mining regulators including Honourable Duker who is in-charge of mines and Darko-Mensah had not showed concern of the trooping of illegal miners, particularly the foreigners (Chinese) to Nzema lands thereby engaging in illegal mining activities.

They pointed out that these galamseyers were secretly involved in illegal mining operations and discharging waste into the water bodies and environments in their aforementioned communities without accounting to anybody.

"In fact we are saying that we the youths 
and opinion leaders are not happy with the uncontrolled or unregulated illegal operations of galamsey activities in our communities. 

"Previously we thought that these government appointees are helping the government to fight against galamseyers but the two appointees are really sleeping in their jobs. We want these top personalities to be sacked now and bring another set of people to help the government to flush out galamseyers on our lands," the Nzema youths appealed to President Akufo-Addo.

According to them, the rise in pollution levels was adversely affecting their health as there had been a rise in respiratory and chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases, asthma, and cardiovascular problems among others.

It has emerged that River Ankobra is seriously choking due to illegal small-scale gold mining activities under the full glare of local authorities and state mining regulators.

The news outlet can report that in spite of efforts by the government’s anti-illegal mining task force dubbed, ‘Operation Halt, illegal miners, popularly known as ‘galamseyers,’ have increased their activities resulting in serious pollution of the Ankobra in Western Region, eroding the gains so far chalked by members of the national task force.

A recent visit to the region by our Senior Correspondent, Freeman Koryekpor, revealed that even though eight (8) mining firms that were secretly involved in illegal mining operations and discharging waste into the river had stopped operations, other miners were back, and operating in resentful alacrity.

Some of the illegal miners who spoke to this paper at Awulezo, Duale, Ablebo, Akango, Assuawah and Apansie communities where the destructive mining is taking place implicated top appointees of the Akufo-Addo administration.

Upon a tip-off, our reporter arrived at these communities and that to his surprise, he heard the noise of machines working on River Ankobra.

During the fact-finding mission, our reporter saw plenty of illegal miners and their mining equipment, including chanfans and water-pumping machines prospecting gold on the water body of River Ankobra.

River Ankobra, which is Ghana’s largest water basin, takes its source from North East of Sefwi Wiawso in the northern part of Western Region. The river further meanders its way 190 kilometres southwards into the Gulf of Guinea.

Some residents of Hiawa, whose main occupation before the influx of galamsey was fishing, lamented the return of the illegal miners after the initial break.

According to them, things had gone bad again and were getting worst by the day.

The banks of River Ankobra in the Prestea and Huni-Valley area, which became a business hub before the formation of the government’s anti-illegal mining task force, this journalist further observed, had bounced back for business.

Some residents who interacted with our reporter, however, appeared unconcerned about the destruction of the river as that was what they got their daily bread from.

A resident of Assuawah, Mr Godfrey Asare Mosi, bemoaned that: “the galamsey operators are all over the place so this contaminated water we see here is due to their activities.”

He continued that “It changed a little when the national task force began their operations, but sadly they are back. Ankobra looks brownish and milky again.”

“I cry for Ghana and it is my wish that all patriotic Ghanaians will cry with me. I have heard of galamsey, but the reality of it hit me when I arrived at this village to work as a teacher and saw river Ankobra. I think the work of the government task force is in vain,” some of the residents in the area noted.

An old man, resident of Ankwaso, another community along the bank of the river, Stephen Asamoah, told our reporter that the scourge of galamsey had transformed “our once purely blue Ankobra, into heavy polluted and unsightly water that can no longer sustain aquatic and community livelihood. 

The galamseyers don’t care about the damage they are causing to the river; they are only interested in money. They are back into the river. Efforts of the President are in vain.”

Some of the residents accused politicians, especially, district and metropolitan chief executives, of undermining the effort of the President.

According to them, these politicians know those behind the pollution of the river Ankobra.

However, several attempts made by this news outlet to get the Deputy Minister have proved unsuccessfully.

As at the time of filing this report, the news outlet has sent the WHATSAPP messages to Honourable Duker but he is yet to respond to the message.