The District Chief Executive (DCE) of Adansi South, Francis Ankomah, has criticized illegal chainsaw operators and illegal miners, describing them as threats to the country’s forest reserves.
He made this known during the Green Ghana Day celebrations, where the New Edubiase Forest District.
Sschool children, and the district Assembly gathered to plant trees at Atobiase in the Adansi South District of Ashanti.
Speaking to Adom News after the event, Mr. Ankomah stressed the need for transparency in the Green Ghana project.
He noted that, reports and updates on the over 45,000 trees planted over the past three years should be made available for public to track progress.
Mr. Ankomah expressed concern over the destructive activities of illegal miners and illegal chainsaw operators, who often cut down trees in the middle of the night, deep within the forest.
He urged the Forestry Commission to intensify efforts to apprehend these perpetrators and hold them accountable, given the significant government expenditure to protect the forest reserve.
The Forest District Manager for New Edubiase, Seth Owusu Abrokwah, and the Member of Parliament for the New Edubiase Constituency, Abdul Salam, echoed these sentiments.
They called for a collective effort to persuade illegal chainsaw operators and illegal miners to cease their activities, warning of long-term detrimental effects.
The MP, Abdul Salam, linked the pollution of water bodies by illegal mining chemicals to the rising incidence of cancer in some small villages, underscoring the need for a unified approach to combat this issue.
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