New Patriotic Party (NPP) Parliamentary hopeful for Akwatia Constituency, Ernest Yaw Kumi in an interview has admitted that the ban on mining activities was a great mistake by the current government
Speaking on ‘Epa Hoa Daben’ show on Kingdom FM monitored by MyNewsGh.com, he explained that the best decision to have been taken was to ensure safe mining practices and to educate and train the miners through well-planned policies not to place a total ban on it.
The Government of Ghana in 2017 placed a ban on the operations of all small-scale mining firms, establishing an inter-ministerial committee and a task force to combat the menace.
This decision was taken as a way of improving the quality of rivers and other water-bodies that were polluted as a result of mining activities.
According to Mr. Yaw Kumi, the Government’s ban on mining activities adversely affected people in his constituency.
“I believe that banning of mining is not the best decision to take. We have to faction out policies that will help our miners to work in line with best practices, My area is a mining community. Those who don’t live in our area do not understand the particular challenge we face,” he said.
He added that people find themselves in certain occupations such as farming or fishing probably because they grew up in a community of farming or fishing but for his people, they survive with mining.
He concluded that “So when the Government banned mining because of its devastating effects, it brought untold hunger and poverty in the community.”
Source: MyNewsGh.com
