ABOUT 20 Excavators have been set on fire by the Military task force tasked to clamp down on illegal mining at some mining sites in the Atiwa enclave of the Eastern Region on Sunday.
Eight of the excavators and one bulldozer destroyed are said to belong to the National Women’s Organiser of the ruling New Patriotic Party, (NPP), Kate Gyamfua.
The burning of the machines took place at her mining site at Akyem Akropong in the Atiwa West District.
The military who stormed the site on Sunday afternoon burnt the brand new bulldozer which was allegedly being used for reclamation.
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 and took away some alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages kept in a fridge.
Secretary to Kate Gyamfua’s mining firm, Nana Asante, expressed disappointment in the government, adding that the task force could have considered the contributions of Ms Gyamfua to the party and retreated on its actions.
He also said that they had adhered to all the mining laws including reclamation of degraded lands.
Narrating the incident, he said “when the soldiers came we took them around and told them we are legal small-scale mining that the site belongs to NPP National Women’s Organizer, Kate Gyamfua. We showed them how we are mining using recycled water without disturbing the river. But they didn’t listen. They have burnt the excavators. I am so worried that they can do this to a whole Kate Gyamfua”.
He added, “this is not galamsey site. We use our dam to wash the gold. They burnt eight excavators, a bulldozer here, and about 20 pumping machines. The excavators include four brand new ones”.
The task force thereafter also stormed other areas such as Akyem-Larbikrom, Dompem and Pamen, where they also raided the sites.
At Akyem Larbikrom and Dompem, four excavators including brand new ones each valued at $120,000 were also set ablaze.
Interestingly, some of the miners when heard the information that the military will visit the mining sites in the region, last week moved their excavators from the mining sites and parked them at the roadside.
Some were spotted along the Apedwa junction on the Accra to Kumasi Highway.
Meanwhile, the anti-galamsey Military task force is expected to continue the operations today (Monday) in the Region to flush out miners polluting water bodies.
– FROM Daniel Bampoe, Kwabeng