Small-scale miners set up 50-man taskforce to monitor galamsey activities

The Ashanti Regional chapter of the Ghana National Association of Small-Scale Miners has inaugurated a 50-man taskforce to partner the government, its agencies and the media coalition against illegal mining in order to completely stamp out the practice.

The taskforce, headed by Mr Dresi Andoh, is to monitor the activities of illegal miners, popularly called galamsey, and provide leads to the government and relevant agencies to descend on them.

The taskforce begins work immediately.

An executive of the association, Mr Frank Osei, told the Daily Graphic in Kumasi last Tuesday that it was part of their contribution to fighting the menace and to prove to the government that they did not support mining in water bodies and in the forest.

Doing the right thing

The taskforce also wants to ensure that its members did the right thing by covering and reclaiming the land after mining.

“We are equally alarmed by the massive destruction of the environment and water bodies and do not subscribe to the reckless way of mining. We mine between 2,000 and 3,000 metres away from water bodies per our licence conditions,” he said. 

Don’t lump us together

Recently, the association appealed to the government not to lump them together with galamsey operators because they had been licensed to do legitimate business and to preserve the environment.

Since that call, the association has held series of fora to lend their support to the government and perhaps demonstrate that they were different.