The executive director of Wassa Association of Communities Affected by Mining (WACAM), has urged the government, the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources, and the Minerals Commission to halt the issuance of new mining licenses in order to help combat the illegal mining canker that has emerged in the nation.
According to Daniel Owusu-Koranteng, the moratorium not granting new licences will help track the operations of existing mining businesses.
Speaking on Asaase Breakfast Show on Tuesday, April 25, 2023, the policing of the activities of existing mining companies will help government know the companies that their activities are causing harm to waterbodies and the environment at large.
The non-compliant companies, he said, should have their licences revoked and pushed out of business.
“How much are we getting out of mining in the grand scheme of things? Surely not enough to place our environment at risk for it…A moratorium to not grant new licences is very necessary. With it, we will be able to focus on those already existing and better police their activities to know those who we should put out of business or otherwise,” Mr Owusu-Koranteng said.
In the latest news report, the former Minister of Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation, Professor Kwabena Frimpong Boateng named some top government officials as being engaged in illegal mining, known as galamsey.
Meanwhile, the Office of the President has dismissed the allegations.
The Presidency in a statement stated that the claims in the report were unfounded and amounted to hearsay.