Eastern Regional Minister, Rita Adjei Awatey, has reacted to the destruction of four excavators during a dawn operation targeting illegal mining activities in the Atiwa Range Forest.
The excavators, which were being used for illegal mining (galamsey), were set ablaze by unknown individuals during the operation carried out by the Rapid Response Teams.
However, no arrests were made as the illegal miners had fled before the team arrived.
Speaking on Adom FM’s morning show Dwaso Nsem, Madam Awatey, who also heads the Eastern Regional Security Council (REGSEC), stated that her outfit had no prior knowledge of the burning of the excavators and would investigate the matter.
“I don’t know those who burnt the excavators. We don’t know the people behind this or on what basis they took this action,” she said.
She further disclosed that REGSEC only received information about the incident around 10 a.m. on Thursday and has since been following up to gather more details.
“I saw some pictures, but I cannot authenticate those behind the act. We are still investigating to identify those responsible. It appears our name was used to commit this act, but the RCC had no knowledge of it,” she added.
According to her, while the government is committed to fighting illegal mining, such actions must be carried out using legal means.
“We want our water bodies to be clear, but we have no idea who went there to do this. If we are fighting galamsey, we have to do it the right way,” she stressed.
Madam Awatey expressed concerns about the lack of coordination, especially since the security agencies and district authorities had no information about the operation.
“My challenge is that the security is present, and there are district and regional authorities, yet we don’t know how this happened or who gave the order,” she lamented.
She assured those affected that due process would be followed, stressing that the rule of law must be upheld in the fight against illegal mining.
“The laws are there, and we must follow them to allow RCC to lead the fight against galamsey properly,” she stated.
Madam Awatey concluded by promising that REGSEC would provide an update on its investigations by next week.
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