Former Power Minister, Dr Kwabena Donkor, says the Minerals Commission and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) should be held liable for the massive explosion at Kobena-Andoh krom in the Western region.
According to him, the explosion that claimed five lives was a result of the failure of the regulatory bodies to execute their oversight responsibilities to ensure the safety of people and the environment.
This follows the Minerals Commission’s admission that the company, STA-ADDSAMS Enterprise, was operating illegally.
A statement from the commission also revealed that the company worked at night to evade compliance with regulations.
But Mr Kwabena Donkor insists the regulatory bodies could have done much more to prevent the incident.
“The Minerals Commission and EPA have responsibilities towards the environment. The Minerals Commission is the regulator of the mining sector which includes quarrying, so it has the basic responsibility to ensure a safe environment…taking from the statement of the Minerals Commission, that their inspector had gone there to warn them, then it is a serious enforcement failure. If you had course to warn them, it also means you ought to have kept an eye on them.
“You are permitted by law to sanction and therefore if you have not executed your mandate to the letter and this catastrophe has happened, you bear responsibility for enforcement failure. EPA likewise has responsibility,” he said in an interview on Joy FM’s Middaynews on Monday, September 11.
He added, “I believe it is high time we hold our regulatory bodies accountable for the powers vested in them by the Ghanaian state.”
According to him, the sector minister of the various regulatory bodies should apply the appropriate organisational sanctions to serve as a deterrent to others.
He further noted that the company and its directors involved should tried in the court of competent jurisdiction.
Dr Donkor also called on the people of Shama to take class action against the regulatory bodies, adding that “it is high time Ghanaians woke up and demanded accountability from regulatory bodies.”
The Member of the Parliament for Sharma Constituency, Samuel Erikson Abakah has joined in the calls for the regulatory bodies to be held responsible for the explosion.
According to him, he will back legal action against the intuitions.
“The institutions should be held liable for the undue hardships and loss of lives and property within the Sharma Constituency. We will follow up on whose negligence has led to this incident. Those people, once investigations are done, will be laughing at the wrong side of their mouths.”
Meanwhile, the Regional Minster has set up a multidisciplinary committee to establish the cause of the explosion.
The nine-member committee, according to the Western Regional Minister Kwabena Okyere Darko Mensah has three weeks to provide a detailed report on the cause of the explosion, other causes to look out for in the future, and if the company had authorization to store explosives.