It’s crazy for anybody to link me with galamsey – angry Okyehene tells Council of State

The Okyehene, Osagyefo Amoatia Ofori Panin II, has voiced out his displeasure to members of the Council of State over ploy to consistently associate him and his Palace to the activities of illegal mining in the country.

An angry Okyehene told members of the Council of State when they paid a courtesy call on him at his Palace, Friday, May 12, 2017, that he gets agitated whenever his name is connected to illegal mining, popularly known as galamsey, cautioning that whoever does that again will have to meet him in court.

His stance on mining, he noted, is explicit and therefore finds it very hard to believe when his name is connected to galamsey.

“Today, an institution of government, BNI, goes to investigate this menace and somebody has the audacity to implicate me. The question I put to you, the press is this; if the land of Akyem Abuakwa is mine and if I had interest in gold, can’t I write to the Minerals Commission to pick up a license and do mining properly if that is what I’ll choose to do? So, it’s crazy for anybody to think that I will get up at night and go steal my own land illegally.”

“Mind you, illegal mining is a criminal activity. So, for anybody to impugn my name to an activity that is criminal is a serious one. I have shed tears of anger and frustrations knowing what we are doing now is taking away from our children … knowing the devastation is greater than what you see and the belief that it is a betrayal of our future generations,” he noted.

He added “Everybody know that I am against mining not because I don’t want mining but because of what mining has done to this country. And then I stood so low and get into this filth. I am just saying that today that the Council of State is here, mayby it’s the beginning of the change that we all want.”

He believes that with proper policy, policing, maintenance and monitoring, illegal mining activities will be a thing of the past.

The Overlord of Akim Abuakwa State, Wednesday, May 10, 2017, demanded an immediate apology from the Bureau of National Investigations (BNI) for wrongfully accusing him of engaging in ‘galamsey’ activities.

His demands follow a BNI report which named him and his palace among scores of other chiefs from eight regions of the country as being engaged in illegal mining activities.

In a statement issued on his behalf by the Public Affairs Director of Akyem Abuakwa Traditional Council, Mr Daniel Ofori-Atta, the Chief expressed disapproval with regard to the conduct of the BNI in the matter and demanded an official apology with immediate effect.

“The BNI cannot fabricate stories and draw conclusions on the basis of their own invention. The report has seriously maligned the Okyenhene and the Ofori Panin Stool,” it said.