The New Patriotic Party’s parliamentary candidate for Amenfi East, Ernest Frimpong has charged illegal miners in the areas to beat up soldier that attempt to halt their mining in the area.
Addressing the miners, in the presence of the Western Regional Minister, Kwabena Okyere Darko-Mensah and some party executives in the region, Ernest Frimpong revealed all anti-galamsey task forces have been disbanded by the government, hence no soldier has the authority to stop anyone from mining.
“Operation halt, galamstop, whatever, whatever, soldiers that ambush you, we have canceled all those operations and officially they do not have permission to run such operations again. So, if anyone comes to your site, you have the right to question him on his mission there,” he told the miners in the Twi language.
“If he says he is on patrol, then that is good because the patrol by the police and the security services protects you and reduces the incidents of robbery. So if from your own will you part ways with 3million, 5 million or 10 million for him to use for fuel, you are just helping him and I won’t speak against it.”, he added.
But if anyone comes around and says because if he is a soldier, leave the site and dismantle your machines, don’t be moved by the uniform he is wearing, if he beats you, equally beat him. Fight him, I will come to your defense.”, he charged the miners to a rousing applause
Justifying his charge, the Parliamentary Candidate insisted so long as there was no anti-galamsey operation, any action of the soldiers was illegal and could not be used to stop the illegal mining of the people he addressed.
“As I said, the authority with which he could use to arrest you has been seized, hence if you are doing illegal [mining] and he wants to arrest you, he is also engaging in an illegality, so you should also arrest him,” he added.
Source: Ghana/Starrfm.com.gh/103.5FM/Edem Kojo
