One of the NPP big wigs Joseph Albert Quarm, mentioned in the IMCIM ‘galamsey’ report, has has denied the assertions made in the report that he obtained extensive mining concessions and sold them to private parties.
The said report titled: “Report on the IMCIM and the way forward”, is reported to have been authored in 2021 by former Minister for Environment and Science, Prof. Kwabena Frimpong-Boateng and presented to President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo through the Chief of Staff.
Reacting to the report on Citi FM’s eyewitness news and monitored by the medi, the former member of parliament for Manso Nkwanta, stated that the content of the report implicating him are false.
“…Totally lies, in the first place, do I own a concession? let alone twelve or twenty-four or multiples of concessions, I do not own a concession, he said.
“Secondly, once I don’t have a concession, how can I sell a concession to someone indeed, he who alleges must prove,” he insisted.
According to Joseph Quarms, the former minister must come out publicly to accept ownership of the report and to provide the evidence that proves same.
“To me, once he has not accepted on your station that the report is from him, I can’t say much but if indeed he has accepted that the report is from his outfit, the for a mining concession, you must have documents covering it, bearing my name Joseph Albert Quarm,” he further stated.
He also dared Prof Frimpong-Boateng to produce documents that bear his name as claimed by the report.
“I will rather advise that your station should request from him to produce all the documents bearing my name for mining purposes,” he challenged.
What the report said about Quarm’s involvement:
It is on records that the activities of some senior members of the NPP accounted for the anger at the community level.
Hon. Joseph Albert Quarm, the former MP for Manso Nkwanta exemplifies such individuals. This member of Parliament for the Manso Nkwanta Constituency in the Ashanti Region and at the same time member of the board of the Minerals Commission.
He used his position as a member of the Minerals Commission to acquire several dozens of large-scale concessions in his district, ostensibly for community mining purposes. He ended up selling these concessions to private individuals, including party member for two thousand Cedis per concession.
This infuriated the party in the constituency so during the 2020 primaries to select a candidate the electorate voted against Hon, Quarm, the sitting MP, who was more resourced that the other candidate.
Although there were allegations that he “camped” delegations and attempted to bribe them, he lost to a lesser-known individual who did not have any financial muscle.