The government has described allegations by former chairperson of the then Inter-Ministerial Committee on Illegal Mining (IMCIM), Prof. Kwabena Frimpong-Boateng, that some officials in government are involved in illegal mining as “a catalogue of grievances and hearsay.”
According to a statement issued by the Office of the President in Accra on April 22, the government had been unable to act on the report which contained the claims by the Professor because the report is not officially before Cabinet as it was submitted in an informal way.
“The document did not have a transmittal or cover letter nor, indeed, an addressee, such as to suggest that it was submitted to the Chief of Staff for action.
It is noteworthy that the IMCIM was a creature of Cabinet, and any formal report on its activities would, normally, be submitted to Cabinet through the Cabinet Secretary, or directly to the President of the Republic as Chairperson of Cabinet. Till date, Prof. Frimpong-Boateng has done neither,” it said.
In this regard, the statement said, it could only be rightly referred to as a catalogue of personal grievances and claims made by Prof. Frimpong-Boateng, intended to respond to some issues he faced as Chairperson of the IMCIM.
The statement said the document was handed to the Chief of Staff at the Office of the President on March 19, 2021, in an informal meeting, where Prof. Frimpong-Boateng complained about public attacks and criticisms made about his tenure as chairperson of the IMCIM.
Despite the serious allegations Prof. Frimpong-Boateng made against some government appointees, it stated that, the government was yet to receive a single piece of evidence to enable the claims to be properly investigated.
“Indeed, the allegations contained in the document are at best hearsay,” the statement added.
The statement reiterated President Nana Akufo-Addo’s commitment to fighting illegal mining saying it was unassailable.
The Office of the President, it said, welcomes any information on illegal mining activities which provides a credible basis for investigations to be conducted by the Criminal Investigations Department of the Ghana Police Service.
The 37-page report by Prof. Frimpong-Boateng, which was authored in March 2021, accused government employees and some top officials at the Presidency of engaging in illegal mining and frustrating his fight against the menace as the former chair of the Inter-Ministerial Committee on illegal Mining (IMCIM).
“Throughout our struggle with illegalities in the small-scale mining sector, what baffled me was the total disregard of the President’s commitment to protect the environment.
“I can state without any equivocation that many party officials from the national to the unit committee level had their friends, PAs, agents, relatives, financiers or relatives engaged in illegal mining,” Prof. Frimpong-Boateng alleged.
Meanwhile, some of the government officials cited in the report have denied any involvement in illegal mining.
A leading member of the governing New Patriotic Party (NPP), Gabby AsareOtchere-Darko, said he did no wrong in seeking information about a company he was defending in court.
He said he believed that his clients was being frustrated hence his intervention.
He said his actions were not in any way interference in the work of the IMCIM.
The Minister of Information, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah also denied allegations that he orchestrated a plot to attack Prof. Frimpong-Boateng over the fight against illegal mining.
He denied engaging in any scheme or practice that seeks to hurt others, as it goes against his principles and upbringing.
BY TIMES REPORTER
