The Eastern regional security liaison officer, Joshua William Agyekum has disclosed that respectable dignitaries in the region including chiefs, police officers, military personnel and security operatives have hijacked illegal mining activities in the region.
According to him, the development is aggravating the menace due to its lucrative nature and lack of law to deal with the perpetrators.
He said until parliament enacts laws that would ensure that excavators and other equipment impounded are confiscated to the state, the fight against galamsey would be that of a losing battle since the perpetrators are always freed with equipment released by the court because there is no proper law.
�Let me tell, those who are doing this business are not fools, because the laws are weak and when they are arrested they would hire lawyer to set themselves free, they continue to do it. We are the cause of the situation as a nation and the more time we take to arrest the situation the more people: chiefs, police officers, security personnel, soldiers etc, will enter because it is lucrative and they are not paying anything to the state.�
The regional security officer said this in Koforidua yesterday during the media briefing by the Eastern regional secretariat of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), as part of activities to mark this year�s World Environment Day.
He expressed fear that the rate at which illegal mining menace is rising; it would soon cause the nation to lose its position as the world�s second largest cocoa producer because lands to galamsey miners.
The Eastern Regional Director of EPA, Felix Addo-Kyere called on government to organize a Mining forum over the galamsey menace for experts input on how to deal with the menace.
He said the fight against illegal mining cannot be done by EPA or the security agencies alone, adding that there is the need for a collaborative effort to handle the menace to save the environment.
The deputy eastern regional minister, Mavis Ama Frimpong said the region is the hub of natural resources in Ghana, hence, the need to ensure that its exploitation does not plug the region into disaster. He said the environment needs to be protected for the next generation.
She called on the media to focus attention on the environment to create awareness on the need to safeguard the environment.
Celebrated every year on June 5, the World Environment Day is a call for global awareness on taking action to protect the environment.
Run by the United Nations Environment Programme, the 2014 World Environment Day coincided with the International Year of Small Island Developing States, which was declared by the United Nations General Assembly to raise awareness of and to draw attention to the critical issues facing the worlds Islands.
The theme for the 2014 World Environment Day was �Raise Your Voice Not The Sea Level.�
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