The Member of Parliament for the residents in the Effiduase Asokore Constituency, Dr. Ayew Afriyie has informed the public with regards to the government’s position to the calls for the total closure of all illegal mining activities in the country.
On a campaign platform, Dr. Ayew afriyie claimed that the calls for the government being led by President Akufo-Addo to put a ban on all forms of mining activities which is causing huge damage to the natural environment specifically in the mining areas would not be answered as the government has no intentions of placing a ban on the illegal mining activities.
“A group of people realized that the New patriotic Party [government] are winning the seats in the mining areas so decided to go and import foreigners, and when they brought them, they did not tell them to go into the forest to go mine gold, but they rather told the to go into the water bodies to go mine,” he said on a campaign platform held to win more votes for the Flagbearer of the New Patriotic Party.
Dr. Ayew Afriyie further recounted the comfortable living conditions the people were enjoying prior to this last few months which has mean engulfed with so many conversations with respect to the deteriorated natural environment in the mining areas.
“Have you people forgotten yourselves? Water has not been a problem throughout the year, Is it not just this month that has started? Dr Ayew added that, “It is some people who wished and thought that, with all their noise for the government to place a ban on mining, then the government will quickly do that.”
According to Dr. Afriyie Ayew, the people making calls for the government to place a ban on illegal mining would not get their wish since the New Patriotic Party is not ready to loose their votes in the mining areas due to their ban on illegal mining.
‘They wish that we [government] would heed to their to their calls and then loose our seats. We won’t stop them today, we won’t stop them tomorrow. Then they will go and invite their media men and then their own people will be discussing it. Is galamsey (illegal mining) done in Accra? Are the water bodies in Accra? They should come to Kumasi for their demonstration and they will be thought a lesson,” he concluded.
