This follows investigations which revealed that officials of Akonta Mining have been leasing parts of the Aboi Forest Reserve in the Western North Region for a fee of GHc300,000 per concession to illegal miners.
This was announced in a statement issued by the sector minister, in Accra on Monday, April 21.
“This company has not only trespassed into protected reserves but has become a criminal syndicate, selling access of the Aboi Forest Reserve to illegal miners for a staggering GHC 300,000 per concession.
“As part of the agreement between Akonta Mining and the illegal miners, weekly royalties of 250 grams of gold are to be paid to the company, lining the pockets of Akonta’s collaborators,” it stated
“Worse, these illegal miners operate under Akonta’s protection, devastating the River Tano and surrounding forests with impunity. They have encroached compartments 49 and 121 of the Tano Nimri forest reserve.”
The statement said Akonta Mining did not have a lease to mine in the Tano Nimiri Forest reserve, and that their mining activities in the forest were illegal and criminal.
The Minister thus assured the Mahama-led government’s determination to bring the company to book.
“One of the most egregious cases we have uncovered involves Akonta Mining Company Ltd., a company legally registered and granted a government lease to mine responsibly off-reserve outside the forest.
“The company, however, does not possess an entry permit into the forest reserve of the Samreboi enclave of the Western North Region. Yet, investigations reveal that Akonta Mining has flagrantly abused this lease.
“In August 2022, the Forestry Commission, with the assistance of the Ghana Police, made some arrests of persons associated with Akonta Mining, encroaching on the forest reserves, specifically compartment 161.
“The docket was supposedly transferred to Accra for further action, and yet nothing was heard of the case,” the statement said.
The Minister has also directed that the officials of the Forestry Commission connected to the illegalities perpetrated by Akonta Mining should be interdicted immediately pending further investigations and prosecution.
“The security agencies have been notified to investigate security officers who have had dealings with Akonta Mining in this particular Forest Reserve,” it noted.
The Attorney-General has also since been briefed and has taken over the investigations for further action,” the statement read.
Meanwhile, an intelligence-led operation carried by the Ghana Police Service and the Forestry Commission on Good Friday, April 17, led to the raid of six illegal mining sites linked to the Akonta Mining Company Limited.
The statement said the operation, which began at 0500 hours lasted a whopping 12 hours, resulting in the arrest of
51 persons including eight Chinese, 39 Ghanaian men, and four Ghanaian women.
Some of the items seized include 30 excavators, of which five were recovered and impounded at the operation base, two pump-action guns loaded with five and two rounds of BB cartridges each, and a single-barrel gun.
Additionally, two Toyota Hilux pickups, a Toyota RAV4, four motorbikes, and a cache of mining equipment were confiscated.
The statement said all the suspects had been transported to Accra, and in police custody pending prosecution.
The Minister sounded a word of warning to all large-scale mining concession holders hiding behind legal leases to fund the destruction of the forests and river bodies.
He stated: “We know some of your schemes – We are coming after you!
“To the youth engaged in illegal mining: There is a better way. We stand ready to support you with better alternatives. But to those who persist in defiance, the state will act without mercy!”
The minister noted that the vigilance of the media and all Ghanaians was crucial in curbing the illegal mining scourge and urged them to report illegal mining activities for swift action to be taken by government.
“Let me be clear: We will not stop until galamsey is completely uprooted.
“We will not stop until our waters run blue, we will not stop until our forests are turned green. We will not stop until the soul of our country is healed!
“We will not stop until every financier, every enabler – the real architects of this destruction face the full rigours of the law.
“We will name, shame, and prosecute them publicly.”
GNA
