Deputy Minister for Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs, Paul Essien, has indicated that the president’s fight against illegal mining is not an attempt to take the youth out of job, but an attempt to streamline mining activities in the country and also protect the country’s lands and water bodies for future generations.
The minister, who is on a two-day working visit to the Upper East Region to engage traditional authorities and their subjects on the dangers of illegal mining, charged them to commit themselves to the fight against illegal mining (galamsey).
According to Mr Paul Essien, President Akufo-Addo is making frantic efforts to create jobs, citing the “One Village, One Dam,” “One District, One Factory” and “Planting for food and Jobs” initiative as some of the avenues through which the government intends to create jobs to engage the teaming unemployed youth, some of who were hitherto involved in illegal mining.
At the palace of the paramount chief of the Naaga Traditional Area, the deputy minister noted that chiefs still have power over the lands and water bodies under their jurisdictions, hence the need to get them involved in the fight.
“We have to take this fight seriously; now many of the youth who are supposed to be the future leaders are out of school and seriously pursuing illegal mining activities, which endanger their lives now and their future as well,” Mr Paul Essien undescored.
He further appealed to the paramount chief and his sub-chiefs, as well as the people in the Naaga Traditional Area (which is one of the areas where illegal mining takes place) to do everything possible to protect their lands for the unborn generations.
The Municipal Chief Executive for Kassena-Nankana East, William Aduum – who accompanied the deputy chieftaincy Minister on the tour – indicated that about 300 individuals are engaged in illegal mining in the area.
According to him, despite swoops to arrest illegal miners and seizure of their machines, individuals occasionally return to the pits to work at night.
Mr Paul Essien will visit the Talensi and Nabdam Districts on his second day of the tour.
From: Ebo Bruce-Quansah, Naaga