Shut Down Chinese Quarry Companies Now - Gomoa Dabenyin And Ojobi Residents Appeal To Akufo-Addo

Visibly worried residents living at Gomoa Dabenyin and Ojobi and their adjoining communities in the Gomoa East District of the Central Region have called for shutting down of commercial operations of the Pilot and Executive Quarrries Stone Companies operating stone quarries on the land of Ojobi along the Kasoa- Winneba- Cape Coast main road.

According to the residents, their call has become necessary because the commercial operations of the two Chinese companies are posing health danger to their lives, making them to contract industrial diseases.

The residents have appealed to President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to impress the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA); either shut down the operations of the companies or evacuate them from the area before they die from the recent rocks dynamite explosion by these two Chinese companies.

According to them, the continued stay of the over 4,500 residents in Gomoa Dabenyin and Ojobi, put their lives and properties in serious danger due to the irresponsible heavy blasting by the two companies which goes 400 or 300 metres to the catchment of the communities of the quarries.

They complained that the excessive blasting goes on routinely which is completely violating the provisions of regulations 176 (1) of Minerals and Mining (Explosives) Regulations, 2012 (Li2177).

They stated that for the look of things the two companies stone mining activities are not bringing any benefit to the people but rather creating a lot of damages to “our buildings and encroaching into our lands that we had genuinely and legally bought from the elders and landowners at Gomoa Ojobi, hence we are appealing to President Akuffo-Addo to direct the two companies to resettle us.”

They told Soireenews Greater Accra Correspondent that they were informed by the management of Gomoa East District Assembly that the Executive Quarry Company has not even paid royalty and taxes to the Assembly for the year 2021.

Speaking in an inclusive interview at the fact-findings mission to the Gomoa Dabenyin and Ojobi communities on Friday, June 2021, the residents wondered why it is taking the government of Ghana so long to ask the companies to resettle them.

They lamented that the heavy blasting of stone rocks of the two companies have adversely caused damages to school buildings, churches and houses in the two areas which have been posing fear and panic to the residents.

“We are not saying that the Executive Quarry and Pilo quarry Companies should not mine stone  but what we are saying was that if indeed the companies want to mine here then they should resettle us because we are genuine settlers on our lands,” the affected residents clarified. 

But what these companies are doing now in support of Minerals Commission of Ghana is completely illegal which has contradicted the provisions of regulations 176 (1) of Minerals and Mining (Explosives) Regulations, 2012 (Li2177),” the residents stated.

They reiterated that “When one gets up late at night you can smell the dynamite and all the chemicals used in blasting. With this in view, the communities are in danger of industrial diseases, air pollution and cracking of building structures,” the residents cried out.”

"Oh! Mr President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, are you waiting for our building structures to collapse and killed us before you will instruct the state mining regulatory agencies to ask these companies operating in Ojobi to do the right things,” they asked and lamented

“We want to tell you that the heavy blasting of stone rocks at Ojobi characterized by its destruction of lives and properties is also more serious like Coronavirus (COVID-19) epidemic that you have taken urgent measures to address it spreading in Ghana.”

In fact, we want to tell our President that the irresponsible operation of the two companies are ongoing and at the moment the communities within the catchment areas of the two companies are in great danger. And we contracting the deadly diseases of the excessive dynamites explosion by the rocks,” they added.

According to them, there is no cordial relationship between the companies and their host communities.

Freeman Koryekpor Awlesu, Back From Gomoa Ojobi, Central Region