Our institutions are controlled by unseen hands – Dr Akwetey

Executive Director of IDEG, Dr Emmanuel Akwetey, has asserted that Ghana’s state institutions are being controlled and manipulated by powerful unseen individuals who have special interests in the affairs of the economy.

Speaking on Joy FM/MultiTV's news analysis programme Newsfile Saturday, Dr Akwetey said the cause of breakdown and failure in state institutions is by unseen hands who manipulate officials only to accomplish their interests. He added that the Asantehene Otumfuo Osei Tutu II was right when he said state institutions are to be blamed for the problems of this country especially with the issue of galamsey.

“There is systemic failure, the institutions have crumbled or broken down or are being controlled by unseen hands. Powerful interests have taken over state entities...But the real forces behind it, the unseen hand and the interests are not seen and they are the ones really steering the game,” he stated.

Speaking on the incidence of galamsey in the country, Dr Akwetey explained that he marvels why Russians, Chinese, Ukrainians or Indians are always caught as people who run the galamsey sites but Ghanaians are never caught as owners of the sites.

He also finds it strange that a Chinese or any other foreign national is able to identify where to find gold when he/she comes to Ghana and immediately starts running an illegal mine.

According to him, he believes the brains behind these acts are politicians who are solely responsible for shielding theses illegal miners. He also argued that powerful people are always protected which is bad for the country.

“How come that you would always find Russian or Ukrainian, or Indian or Chinese but you don’t see the Ghanaians? You see the powers that be, are they being shielded or promoted or protected? I believe they will be politicians, I believe they will be very powerful people, and in our country you know when you step on the feet of the powerful people, the person who steps on their feet is pursued actively and the powerful person is always protected”.

He admonished that, it is about time the powerful individuals behind the acts got exposed and brought to book, if not, then he is skeptical about where the country is headed.

“It is a system that has to be unravelled and so long as we are not doing it, it makes me skeptical about where we are heading. Because Ghanaians must be brought forward and exposed for being the brains behind it. I cannot see how a Chinese comes all the way to Ghana and knows where to find gold”.

“We are seriously looking at the collapse of state institutions that are meant to provide security, protect our assets and resources and assure us that what belongs to all would be taken good care of in the interest of all. Individual Ghanaians have taken over and are eating into our institutions and with all this, I haven’t heard from the police,” Dr Akwetey said.

Russian Mine

Four other foreign nationals who were arrested at Manso-Tontokrom for their involvement in illegal mining in the Ashanti Region, have been put before an Accra Circuit Court.

The four who are of Russian and Ukrainian origins have been charged with conspiracy to commit crime to wit undertaking small scale mining without a license.

They are Farid Isaev, Vadim Potokia, Saerhii Chepurniy all engineers and Genadiy Rubee, a Site Engineer.

The court did not take their pleas and remanded them into custody to enable the court to secure a Russian Interpreter as accused could not speak English.

Per Ghana's laws foreigners are not supposed to engage in small-scale mining but in reality citizens of different countries, have in collaboration with local counterparts are owning and illegally operating many mining sites across the country.

A number of these foreign miners, including the all powerful Asia Huang popularly called Aisha or the galamsey queen have been arrested and are being prosecuted.

While describing the fight against galamsey as challenging, the Lands Minister Peter Amewu believes with the continuous support from all Ghanaians the battle against galamsey will be won.