GH¢326m allocated for dislodged miners must be accounted for - Ablakwa to government

Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, MP for North Tongu

North Tongu Member of Parliament, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa has described the Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo government as one that is neck-deep in the illegal small-scale mining (galamsey) industry.

The MP, in a Facebook post dated April 26, said a leaked report on galamsey and how government officials are alleged to be involved in it, showed that the galamsey fight was a "grand deception."

He is, however, concerned about budgeted funds over two years amounting to over GH¢326m, which sum was to cater for people who lost their livelihoods to the illegal small-scale mining.

Ablakwa's post read: "We now know Akufo-Addo's galamsey fight was a grand deception; can this Government of Galamsey account for the GHS326.5million allocated in the 2022 & 2023 Budgets for so-called dislodged miners under the National Alternative Employment & Livelihood Programme launched by President Akufo-Addo?

"Do the beneficiaries exist? We shall be demanding real identities at the earliest opportunity when Parliament resumes. [See pages 239 & 197 of 2022 & 2023 Budgets respectively for cumulative allocations]."

Frimpong-Boateng galamsey report triggers reactions

A leaked 36-page report by former environment minister Professor Kwabena Frimpong-Boateng, accused some government employees and some top officials at the Presidency of engaging in galamsey and frustrating his fight against the menace as the former chair of the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Illegal Mining (IMCIM).

Reacting to the report, the presidency through a statement indicated that the report was not an official document formally delivered to the Office of the President even though it was handed to the Chief of Staff.

It described the report as a catalogue of personal grievances by Prof. Frimpong-Boateng, intended to respond to some issues he faced as Chairperson of the IMCIM.

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SARA