I want to work with IMCIM again – Charles Bissue

Former Secretary to the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Illegal Mining (IMCIM), Charles Bissue, has disclosed that he won’t turn down an opportunity to work with the committee even though he is embarrassed by the ‘galamsey’ fraud exposé.

Mr Bissue said he is proud of the strides he made while working with the committee and won’t do anything differently if given the chance again.

“I wouldn’t say I regret the Anas’ expose. But yes [I feel embarrassed]. It depends on where you are coming from. We were shown what I exactly did in there but if you are asking me about the job and what I did, I have not regretted doing it. If there is an opportunity, I will do the same things that I was doing as a secretary of the IMCIM a thousand times.”

In an interview on a segment of CITI FM’s Eyewitness News, Charles Bissue insisted he did nothing wrong while working with the committee and will surely be vindicated after the Special Prosecutor’s investigations.

“I did not take any money to circumvent the processes. Vindication is in the womb of time. Let’s wait for the Special Prosecutor to finish investigations. I am sure when the Special Prosecutor is done, the conclusion will even make it easier for all of us to talk about,” he told Umaru Amadu Sanda on Point Blank.

Charles Bissue voluntarily resigned as the Secretary of the Committee in 2019, after by Anas Aremeyaw Anas’ exposé on illegal mining showed him collecting money to facilitate the issuance of a mining license.

An investigative piece by the TigerEye PI team showed some state officials including Charles Bissue allegedly taking bribes in a video to evade laid down procedures for the procurement of mining licenses.

Information Minister, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah speaking to journalists after the exposé, said a thorough investigation will be conducted, and anyone found culpable will face the law.

“Government has taken notice of a documentary by Tiger Eye PI suggesting that it has uncovered acts that undermine the fight against illegal small-scale mining. Government will have the said tapes properly investigated using the raw unedited footage and if any person is found to have solicited money or taken a bribe to bend rules, the necessary actions will be taken,” Oppong Nkrumah said.

But Charles Bissue is confident the investigations will prove his innocence.