The Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, has issued a stern warning to illegal miners to stay off Ghana’s rivers or face severe consequences.
Speaking during a patrol of the polluted Ankobra River in the Western Region with officers of the National Anti-illegal Mining Operations Secretariat, the Minister vowed government’s determination to “turn the rivers blue again.”
He disclosed that President John Dramani Mahama has directed security forces to take full control of all major rivers as part of a new enforcement strategy against illegal mining.
Mr. Buah stressed that Ghana’s laws do not permit mining in river bodies and warned that security personnel will soon occupy and protect the country’s waterways to safeguard them from further destruction.
The patrol team, which included the Western Regional Minister and other security operatives, noted ongoing interventions aimed at tackling the menace of galamsey in the region.
