George Mireku Duker
Of all the countries in West Africa, Ghana is the easiest to enter illegally by our West African neighbours and Asians.
As if their illegal entry is not enough disrespect such ECOWAS neighbours and their Asian counterparts pitch camp in areas isolated as protected zones to exploit our resources to the detriment of our environment.
If this is not impunity or outright contempt for our laws we do not know what else is. While in Ghana no state agent would question them about their immigration status as it obtains in other ECOWAS countries especially the francophone ones.
In some areas they soon become land sellers their confidence traceable to our unwavering hospitality.
When the Deputy Minister for Lands and Natural Resources George Mireku Duker who doubles as MP for the Tarkwa-Nsuaem Constituency, a gold-endowed area, issued a warning to such elements to stop breaching our laws he had presented a sorry state of both immigration and the degradation of our forests and water bodies.
We are on the edge of helplessness even hopelessness as Malians, Burkinabes and Asians particularly Chinese, virtually race to protected parts of our forests and rivers they regard as El Dorados to prospect for gold. They leave behind a trail of degradation of our God-given land bequeathed to us by our forebears. Our ability to bequeath same to generations yet unborn is being threatened by foreigners who could not care a hoot about our fortunes.
It is sad to note that we have so far failed to protect these lands through complicity and indifference to the interest of the nation.
The Deputy Minister’s warning should not stop there but proceed towards a verifiable action.
It is inconceivable that foreigners will sneak into the country and cause havoc to our environment with the connivance of locals.
If the abuse of existing ECOWAS protocols is what has made it possible for such persons to gatecrash our country and engage in illegal mining activities how about their Asian counterparts?
An envoy of an Asian country in his bid to defend his compatriots once said that it is locals who show his people the way to the gold-bearing areas of the country. Much as he may have a point this is restricted in scope; he too can play a role in controlling the number of unwanted elements from his country who invade our country. We are inching towards breaking point.
When the whip is cracked upon bad foreign elements in restricted areas of our country let no envoy intervene.
Foreigners in the restricted forest enclaves and prospecting for gold in our water bodies should be flushed out now.