Illegal mining has ravaged 261 acres of land in the Breman-Adomanya forest area of the Wassa Amenfi West District, Western Region. The damage, spearheaded by Chinese and Ghanaian galamsey operators, has destroyed timber trees, cocoa, and rubber crops while polluting the surrounding River Tano.
Upon arriving at the scene to record the destruction, Akwasi Agyei Annim, the Western Regional Correspondent for Citi News, encountered animosity.
The miners were warned by a security officer while Annim and his crew were recording. After rapidly organizing, the galamsey operators attacked the reporters and took their cameras, microphones, and Annim’s cell phone by force.
prominent politician suspected of selling the land to the illegal miners. In addition to insulting Annim, he detained the journalists till 7:00 PM by blocking their escape with his pickup truck.
Before permitting the media to depart, the miners insisted that all recordings be erased. Only after police reinforcements showed there were the journalists released, promising to remove the video from the Asankrangwa District Police Station.Only after police reinforcements showed there were the journalists released, promising to remove the video from the Asankrangwa District Police Station.
Concerned citizen Isaac Bekye drew attention to the continuous environmental damage and charged local officials with ignoring the unlawful activity.
“What is happening on Adomanya lands currently is not good at all. Illegal mining operators have destroyed a vast area of 261 acres of land, including cocoa, trees, food crops, and rivers. Some of us have complained and reported over and over to authorities but to no avail,” he lamented.
“Traditional authorities and other authorities have failed to listen to us. The galamseyers chase us away with guns and cutlasses whenever we come here. We plead with operators, including Dabena and Egbegee companies, to stop the destruction,” he stated.
He demanded that the government act swiftly:
“We voted for change to protect our land and environment. We urge the government, especially the Lands and Natural Resources Minister, to send in heavy security forces to stop this destruction.”
When Citi News contacted Clement Adzormah, the Asankrangwa Minerals Commission Officer, regarding the situation of Ebegee Mining Company Limited and Dabena Mining Company, the perpetrators of the destruction and assault on the journalists in Galamsey, he declined to provide information regarding their mining permits and whether he had encountered those two operators during his monitoring.
Instead, he ordered that this information be obtained from his headquarters in Accra.
