Protecting the national interest, a top priority - Chief of Defense Staff

The Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), Lieutenant General Obed Boamah Akwa, has called for the joint military/police taskforce (Operation Vanguard) assigned the job of checking the destructive activities of illegal miners to place the national interest above any other thing they do.

They should continue to remain on the alert, maintain high standards of discipline and to stick to the rules of engagement.

He was addressing troops of the Ashanti and Eastern Forward Operation Base (FOB) at their Obuasi Headquarters.

Lt. Gen Akwa said the recklessness - disturbing destruction of the environment could simply not continue and must end.

He applauded the soldiers and the police officers for the good job they had been doing and asked that this was sustained to save the forests and river bodies.

They have been operating in challenging and difficult terrain – territory often inundated with deep uncovered pits.

The CDS encouraged the soldiers and their police counterparts to work as a team and to go the extra mile to make sure that items and equipment seized from illegal miners were properly secured.

They needed to preserve the evidence to aid the successful prosecution of offenders – those who had chosen to defy the ban on the illegal activity.

Lt. Gen Akwa also had a word of advice for illegal miners out there issuing threats and it was that “this is not going to help anyone”.

If anybody had any issues, there were avenues they could use to get their grievances addressed.

Resorting to threats was a road to nowhere and something that was completely unhelpful.