Small-Scale miners demand release of seized excavators from licensed mining sites

The Ghana National Association of Small-Scale Miners (GNASSM) has petitioned the government to intervene and immediately release all excavators and other machineries seized from licensed small scale mining sites.

At a press briefing in Kumasi, Mr Abdul Razak Alhassan, National Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the Association, explained that some security officers, sometimes acting under the influence or protection of powerful political figures, storm mining sites with impunity, confiscate equipment, demand illegal payments, and, in some cases, violently eject miners from land they have legally licensed to mine.

According to the PRO, this had been happening across various mining communities in the Ashanti, Western North, Upper East, Eastern, Western and Savannah Regions, where countless hardworking small-scale miners were being targeted and terrorized by these security personnel.

He said such activities undermined formal small-scale mining initiatives by the government and the Reset Agenda and “it must end and we demand that it ends now”.

The PRO indicated that members of GNASSM had at all times engaged in responsible and ethical mining practices, adding that, never in their history had they defended illegality.

“We do not condone irresponsible mining that causes havoc to our environment.

That is why over the years, we have supported and collaborated with the government to enforce restrictions at the RED ZONEs (Forest Reserves, water bodies and buffers zones), a responsible act we will continue to do”, he stated.

Mr Alhassan said the small-scale mining sector had huge socio-economic prospects if properly managed.

The employment opportunities, the supply of raw gold for value additions, the upstream, midstream and downstream linkages benefits, and its integration into the local economy, could not be overemphasized.

The Association therefore suggested that the National Anti-illegal mining Operation Secretariat (NAIMOS) launched by the sector Minister of Lands and Natural Resources be adequately resourced to handle the illegal mining issues in a more coordinated approach to realize the impact of their mandate.

Again, GNASSM demanded stronger protection for licensed small-scale miners, including clear protocols for police operations on mining sites to help promote responsible mining.

The Association was also of the view that an alternative approach was very important; force could not be used all the time.

“In some instances, we should engage the illegal miners and work with them to correct the mess that they have created and to also formalize them where practicable.

GNASSM is prepared to lead in realizing this approach if given the opportunity.

We have all the tools and resources to ensure this objective is achieved when given the mandate to do so”.

The Association also called on the government to build capacities of the security agencies to understand the small-scale mining operations and licensing regime of the sector.
Source: GNA