The mine manager for the Akatakyieso Youth Mining Co-operative in the Adansi North District of the Ashanti Region has denied media reports suggesting that national security operatives seized their legal mining site and engaged in illegal mining there.
Speaking to the media during a fact-finding mission to the site, Samuel Gyabaa, the mine manager, explained that national security conducted an operation on their site to check documentation from Tuesday, April 29, to Thursday, May 1, 2025.
He said that during this two-day period, the mine was shut down to allow investigations into their operations. Therefore, the site was taken over by the security operatives in collaboration with site management, and they were later directed to resume operations on May 1, 2025.
The mine manager denied a report by Multimedia alleging that national security operatives were mining on the site.
He said, “On Tuesday, April 29, we were here at about 11 to 12 a.m. when a team from national security arrived with armed military personnel. We were asked to leave the site for them to take over, so we left and later met them in Kumasi. On Thursday, May 1, 2025, around 4 a.m., they vacated the site for us to resume our business,” he explained.
He further stated, “Before leaving the site, they informed us that in underground mining, you cannot just leave the place unattended, so we left a skeleton staff of about 14 people, including an electrician, pump men, ventilation personnel, and shift bosses, to manage the place until full operations resumed. They were here but were not actually mining. They were only pumping water from underground,” he said.
He added, “Our meeting with the national security operatives in Kumasi was conversational and not hostile or intimidating. We went with our file containing all our documentation, which they reviewed before allowing us to continue our work.”
Responding directly to questions from EIB’s Ashanti Regional Correspondent Isaac Justice Bediako regarding the media publication that claimed national security operatives were mining on the site, Samuel Gyabaa said, “The underground site was locked with a gate, and the keys were handed over to a military officer stationed at the porter’s post. No one was allowed entry unless it was for technical work related to the safety of the site. Those who entered were our pump men, electricians, and shift bosses. No one else, including military personnel, went underground,” he explained.
He expressed shock at the report suggesting national security operatives were mining on the site: “I just heard the news this morning. Nobody is mining here at the Akatakyieso Youth Co-operative Mining site. No national security personnel are mining here,” he said, dismissing the media claim.
Ashanti Regional Security Coordinator, Captain (Retired) John Kwame Jabari, who led the operation, also expressed shock at the media report.
He explained, “Yes, on Tuesday, April 29, 2025, national security conducted an operation here based on allegations that the site was operating illegally. We found six Chinese nationals on site, suspected to be illegal miners. They were escorted to the Immigration Office in Kumasi for verification. Immigration confirmed that all six had valid working and residency permits, so they were released along with the site management. On Thursday, they returned to resume operations,” he said.
He added, “On Thursday, we withdrew our personnel from the site to allow operations to resume, so it was surprising to see publications on Sunday claiming national security operatives were engaging in illegal mining here. As you can see, there is no national security personnel here who have taken over the legitimate mining site,” he explained.
The media team later moved to another illegal mining site near the Akatakyieso Youth Mining site. Captain Jabari further explained, “This is where we stationed the national security operatives after taking control of this illegal mining site, which has no legal mining permit. Our checks revealed that the illegal miners were operating under the cover of the Akatakyieso Youth Co-operative mining documents,” he said.
He added, “We brought in the Minerals Commission Director in charge of the Obuasi area, who confirmed that this site does not have an operational permit. However, plans are ongoing to regularize their operations, considering the population of over 5,000 miners here,” he said.
He disclosed that the place had become a notorious hub for drug peddling and other illegal activities, hence the decision to stop operations.
“It is not true that we came here to mine; that’s not our responsibility. When we arrived, they were mining and had property on site, so it was normal to station personnel there to protect those properties,” he reiterated.
The publication alleging that national security operatives were conducting illegal mining led police from Asante Bekwai to storm the site early Monday morning.
During the police operation, which involved warning shots, officers overpowered the few stationed national security operatives and arrested nine suspected illegal miners, allegedly posing as national security operatives. They were taken to the Ashanti North Regional Police Command for interrogation.
Speaking to the media, Deputy Police Commander Mr. Cephas Arthur said, “We received intelligence yesterday that illegal mining was ongoing, so we launched an operation this morning and arrested about nine people at the site. We are currently investigating, so we can’t confirm identities yet. We’ll update the media once investigations are complete.”
Asked if the suspects are indeed national security operatives, the police commander said, “For now, we cannot confirm if the suspects are national security operatives. We’ve just started the investigation and are still verifying their identities and roles.”
When asked whether the suspects were found mining, he responded that the information is subject to confirmation through the ongoing investigation.
Source: www.starrfm.com.gh / Isaac Justice Bediako
