Asante Mampong Traditional Council and concern citizens have kicked against any group of persons or company who will dare venture into any mining activities be it small or large scale in the area.
Spokesperson for the Group, Mr Victor Owusu, at a press conference explained that, the inhabitants of Asante Mampong Traditional Area, were not blind to the devastation brought by illegal mining also known as ‘galamsey’ operations in certain communities in the country.
He stated that, the devastation of the farmlands and the pollution of water bodies were resulting in hunger, because “farmlands have been made barren by illegal mining activities and thirst because water bodies have been polluted and infested with mercury and cyanide.”
In their view, such communities would soon spend all the monies they have gotten from the galamsey on food and water.
He stressed that, they were up in arms because “we have an impinging responsibility to protect our naturally bequeathed forests and water bodies and ensure that the quality of the resources which also belong to succeeding generations, as a matter of birth rights, is not compromised or abused by greedy illegal miners and their collaborators”.
The Spokesperson believed that there should be fairness in the intergenerational rights on how they used God-giving natural resources and the environment.
“If they cannot improve upon what they came to meet, they dare not make it worse than what was handed over to them by their forebears,” he intoned.
And said their vehemently rejection of illegal mining “is the issue of the threat to rivers and water bodies in the Ashanti Mampong Traditional Area.”
He noted that the operational area of a company that was granted the mineral rights by the Mineral Commission would encompass most of the rivers and streams that are the sources of water for the people.
Benimu, Abrena, Ntunnan, Nwewe, Kyiremfa all in Benim, which is at the center of the illegal mining exploration, Adwiee, Sumanpa, Awaaye, Tadie, Taatafo, in Mampong are some of the rivers within the enclave of the mining company, he said.
The influence of Sumanpa and Kyiremfa is the location of the Ghana Water Company Limited’s Dam.
It provides water for the Mampong Municipality, Educational Institutions like Akenten Appiah Menka University of Skills Training and Entrepreneurial Development (AAMUSTED), Saint Monica College of Education, Mampong Technical College of Education, Mampong Midwifery and Nursing School, Amaniampong Senior High School and Saint Joseph Senior High School in addition to supplying water to Nsuta and Kwamang.
Mr Owusu noted “we cannot be looking unconcern for the mining in the Traditional Area to take place, because it would be a threat to the collapse of our education system, as Mampong has been known as an educational hub, because no parent would allow their ward to attend a school to struggle for water”.
Nana Boakye Yiadom Atonsah, the Gyaaasehene of Mampong, on behalf the traditional council also disclosed that, Nananom of Mampong Traditional council pledged their unflinching support to the group(concern citizens).
He said they would not allow any destructive surface minerals exploration within the traditional area.
FROM KINGSLEY E.HOPE, KUMASI
