Award-winning undercover journalist, Anas Aremeyaw Anas has released a trailer of his latest investigative piece which focuses on illegal deals on mining sites and details about how persons tasked to help bring illegal mining (Galamsey) activities to a halt, are rather using the opportunity to fraudulently make money to the detriment of the state.
Dubbed ‘Galamsey Fraud’ this explosive piece exposes persons authorized by the government to lead the fight against illegal mining, a menace that had dire effects on the country’s water bodies and forest reserves.
A snippet of the exposé posted by the investigative journalist on his Facebook page reveals the identities of some officers of the taskforce deployed to guard Ghana’s forest reserves and other mining sites to prevent illegal miners from operating, taking bribes.
Some members of government’s Inter-Ministerial Committee on illegal Mining were also caught on camera sabotaging the fight against galamsey.
Anas Aremeyaw Anas announced earlier that the report will be published in the New Crusading Guide and urged the general public to “grab a copy of your authoritative New Crusading GUIDE and read about the men who stab the nation in the back”.
“Get to read about the illegal deals on mining sites and details about how the men who are supposed to work in the interest of the President and Ghanaians, take the money and neglect their duties. Be prepared to see the shocking realities on illegal mining. Anas Aremeyaw Anas hits the ground together with the team. Part 1,” he disclosed on February 19, 2019.
Illegal mining has been a topical issue in the country for the past years igniting several campaigns and awareness negative impacts of the menace on water bodies, forest reserves and more importantly on human lives.
The government, in taking action on the campaign constituted joint police and military taskforce called Operation Vanguard, which was tasked to arrest and ensure prosecution of illegal small-scale miners in the country.
To resolve this, the government imposed a ban on small-scale mining as part of a frontal attack on the menace.
The ban came at a time activities of illegal and small-scale miners were affecting the countries natural resources as some, particularly the foreign nationals who are mostly Chinese, used dangerous chemicals such as mercury and others means that were unfriendly to the environment.
Their activities polluted freshwater bodies that serve as strategic sources of drinking water for the rural dwellers and extended to the entire nation as the Ghana Water Company Limited had challenges getting potable water for national consumption.
The government’s resolve to end illegal mining was further intensified with the deployment of security men to affected areas to cclamp downon stubborn miners.
The taskforce named ‘Operation Vanguard’ was made up of personnel of the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) and the Police Service.
The taskforce was deployed to the Ashanti, Eastern and Western regions and stay at their assigned regions until all forms of illegal mining have been stopped and unauthorised mining pits permanently destroyed.
Just as many thought the galamsey fight was seeing the light of day with some arrests having been made, the taskforce was accused of rather protecting illegal miners by taking bribes from them, an allegation that was bluntly denied by commanders of the Operation Vanguard.
Source: www.Awakenewsonline.com
