The fight against illegal mining popularly known as galamsey has now moved from physical to spiritual.
This, according to New Patriotic Party (NPP) member, Henry Nana Boakye is because those involved have consulted shrines and other spiritual deities for power and protection against any external forces bent on destroying their work.
“The fight against galamsey not flesh and blood; it is against principalities and demons” he stated on Asempa FM’s Ekosii Sen programme Tuesday.
Nana Boakye’s comment is in reaction to the horrific killing of the commanding officer of a military detachment guarding a mine at Denkyira Boase in the Upper Denkyira West District of in the Central Region.
The officer, Captain Maxwell Mahama who was said to have gone for jogging Tuesday morning was lynched by a mob after they allegedly mistook him for an armed robber because he was in possession of a weapon.
Pictures and videos of the brutal assault flooded social media and the actions of the residents have been condemned in no uncertain terms.
Many including President Akufo-Addo has condemned it and has promised the family of the deceased the perpetrators of this heinous crime would be brought to book.
Defence Minister, Dominic Nitiwul told Joy FM the circumstance under which the officer lost his life “is weird” and hopes investigations will unravel the actual circumstances of his death.
But on Ekosii Sen programme, Nana Boakye said the action of the Denkyira Boase indigene is beyond the bounds of human reasoning.
In his opinion, no sane person will set a fellow human being on fire even if he or she is a criminal.
Nana Boakye who is also the Deputy Executive Director of the National Service Scheme underscored the need for the security agencies to arrest and deal with the perpetrators ruthlessly to serve as a deterrent to others.
Nana Boakye expressed his sincere condolences to the wife, family and the unit of the late Captain Maxwell Mahama for their unfortunate loss.