Burning of equipment: Seek redress – John Boadu to Kate Gyamfua

The General Secretary of the governing New Patriotic Party(NPP), John Boadu has asked the party’s Women’s Organizer Kate Gyamfua to seek redress following the destruction of her mining equipment by the anti-galamsey military taskforce.

The military task force clamping down on illegal mining on Sunday, May 16, 2021, set fire into eight (8) excavators, a dozer, and dozens of water pumping machines at the mining site of Madam Kate Gyamfua at Akyem Akropong in Atewa West District.

A dozer and three of the burnt excavators were brand new. The excavators were purchased at a cost of $120,000 each, according to some workers at the site.

The Dozer was being used for reclamation but was not spared by the military task force. The military task force spent about two hours at the mining site as they started receiving calls from various quarters but eventually burnt the machines and allegedly beat some of the workers.

They also seized pump action guns being used to provide security at the site.

But officials of the mining company insist they have been wrongfully attacked as their operation is legally backed by law.

Speaking on Okay FM monitored by Kasapafmonline.com Tuesday, John Boadu stated that inasmuch as the party supports the government’s fight to protect the environment, any mining company that feels hard done by the Taskforce should seek redress.

“She’s made her point that first of all her company engages in large scale and not galamsey (illegal small scale mining) and does not operate anywhere near a water body and so I think when she returns from vetting MMDCE aspirants, she’ll take up the needed redress she has under the laws of Ghana.

"Those who authorized the burning of the equipment if they also have proof that the company is engaged in galamsey then they should put it out. This goes for all other miners who think their equipment has been wrongfully destroyed.

"I’m saying so because if I do not take care it will be misconstrued that I’m talking for Madam Kate Gyamfua because she’s NPP Women’s Organizer.

"The soldiers may also have a reason and so we need to hear from both sides so that if there’s any redress she can take it up.”