General News of 2013-03-05

Gov't will flush out aliens in illegal mining — Fuseini

The Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Alhaji Inussah Fuseini has stated the government’s determination to flush out foreigners who are into illegal mining in the country.

He said avenues have been created for nationals who were into illegal small-scale mining to regularise their activities or else the law would deal with them.

The minister said this when the leadership of the Ghana Chamber of Mines (GCM) paid a courtesy call on him in Accra on Monday.

The call to congratulate the minister on his appointment.

According to the minister, “it was totally unacceptable for non-Ghanaians to disregard our laws and exploit our lands to their benefit”.

He said those illegal miners did not pay tax or royalties to the state but the government had to use the taxpayer’s money to repair the damages that they had caused in the various communities where they had been operating.

He bemoaned the impact of illegal small-scale miners on communities and lands, saying the evidence of their activities was frightening.

The minister said there was the need to empower the security agencies to be able to confiscate the land on which they performed their illegal activities and the equipment they used.

He said landowners who also condoned the activities of illegal miners should be brought to book.

“Ad hoc disjointed approach in dealing with the problem will not work, we need a consolidated approach,” he added.

He said the government was ready to work with the private sector to propel the economy of the country forward.

The Chief Executive Officer of the GCM, Mr Toni Aubynn, on behalf of the leadership of the chamber commended the minister for his current position.

He said the choice of the former Deputy Minister for Energy as the Minister for Lands and Natural Resources was appropriate as he was not new to the exploration sector.

According to him, his outfit was ready to partner the government to ensure that the country’s natural resources benefited all.

He said the mining sector after offering significant employment to many of the youth in the country, also contributed 28 per cent to the country’s gross domestic product (GDP).

He commended the government for putting in place measures that would help the country to develop and implement a programme to save the mining sector.