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Residents in some mining communities in the country have lashed out at multinational mining companies, accusing them of secretly operating the biggest large-scale �galamsey� [to wit illegal mining] at their concessions. The residents, however, did not mention the names of such mining companies but said the companies� operations in the mining communities in Ghana had no legal backing. The residents revealed this at a two-day sensitisation workshop held in Tema for the media, security agencies, Commission of Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) and Civil Society Organisations (CSOs). The workshop, which was organised by Wacam, with funding from OSIWA, brought together residents from Dormaa, Osino, Saamang, Bogoso, Prestea, Kubi, Tarkwa, Takoradi, Obuasi and Accra, to brainstorm on the abuse of rights of residents in these mining communities and the gaps in the Mineral and Mining Act, 2006 Act 703 in Ghana. On the issue of companies operating without their contracts being ratified by Parliament, the participants asserted that there were a number of mining companies whose contracts were yet to be approved by Parliament. �There are a number of mining companies in the same situation,� said a resident from Tarkwa, Mr. Samuel Ofori-Atta. Even though he [Samuel Ofori-Atta] could not give the total number of mining companies that were in that category he called on Minerals Commission to investigate the matter. He further called on the Minerals Commission to sort out the mining companies in accordance with the nature of their operations for parliamentary approval. The participants, though recounted the issue was raised in Parliament by the Chairman of the Parliamentary Select Committee on Mines and Energy, Dr. Kwabena Dorkor, they were surprised that the Minerals Commission was yet to furnish the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources with the full list of mining companies operating without ratified agreement categorised according to their nature of operations. Speaking on Joy FM recently, Dr. Donkor accused some mining companies of breaching the country�s mining laws. �As I speak, many mining companies are still in breach of our laws. They are operating illegally. They are still involved in large-scale galamsey. �No mining lease has come to Parliament for ratification, to the best of my knowledge. Therefore, whatever mining is taking place there is illegal,� he added. He blamed the present regulatory failure on the Minerals Commission, saying �we will challenge the Minerals Commission to live up to its mandate.� That aside, he said, it was the responsibility of these companies to respect the law. Nonetheless, the participants at the workshop urged civil society organisations to stand up to what they described as �illegal and abuse� of the country�s Minerals and Mining laws. Responding to the call on CSOs, Executive Director of the Africa Centre for Energy Policy, Mr. Mohammed Amin Adam, observed that the situation smacked of collusion between state institutions and the mining companies. He expressed concern about the inability of government and Parliament to hold these companies accountable.