President Akufo-Addo with the Chiefs of Ada
The Chiefs and people of the Ada Traditional Area are unhappy with the activities and operations of illegal miners which is affecting the Songor Salt Project in the area.
They therefore want government to clamp down on the activities of illegal salt miners to protect the Ada Songor Salt Project.
Paramount Chief of Ada Traditional area, Nene Abram Kabu Akuaku III, said the situation has far-reaching implications for the health of the lagoon, the viability of the project and the socio-economic development of the area.
This was when he and members of the Ada Traditional Council (ATC) paid a courtesy call on President Akufo-Addo at the Jubilee House.
Nene Akuaku III, who is also the President of the ATC told the President that since that since the inception of activities in 2021 by Electrochem Ghana Limited, the investor in the project, Songor had seen “a massive facelift and revamping to the admiration of all well-meaning people of Ada and Ghana as a whole.”
Nene Abram Kabu Akuaku III, however, noted that while the Ada Songor salt industry was seeing positive development, there was a need for State intervention to boost the project.
He said the activities of illegal salt miners were a serious hindrance to the progress of the work on the project and a threat to the investors’ operation in the concession, describing the situation as unacceptable to the people of Ada.
It is for this reason he appealed to the President to use his office to support the traditional area to curb the menace of illegal salt mining since in his own words “the harm this illegal salt mining activity poses to the Songor Lagoon is far-reaching.”
“Your Excellency, help us have the state security agencies act swiftly to curb and bring to order those in the Ada traditional area who have taken the law into their own hands and have total disregard for the law,” he said.
On his part, President Akufo-Addo was happy that the chiefs and people of Ada had realized the enormous benefits to be had from the Songor Lagoon salt project.
He pointed out that the benefits of the project, which transcended the Ada area, had the potential to make a major contribution to the economic fortunes of the country.
He urged the chiefs to lend the needed support to the investors in the project.
On the request for state security for the project, President Akufo-Addo assured the traditional council that he would take the matter up with the security agencies to ensure that “miscreants, people who do not have the welfare of the community at heart, but only their individual pockets are brought to book and disciplined.”
The President accepted a request by the chiefs to visit the project site and to participate in the annual Asafotufiami festival of the area that comes off on August 3, 2023.
By Charles Takyi-Boadu, Presidential Correspondent