The Member of Parliament for Old Tafo in the Ashanti Region, Vincent Ekow Asafuah Esq. has lauded the Minerals Commission for rejecting an application from High Street Ghana Limited for a mining license within the Kakum National Park.

According to the ruling New Patriotic Party Member of Parliament, the Mineral Commission has demonstrated pro-activeness in the discharge of its mandate as required by the laws of the country.

The Old Tafo lawmaker expressed disappointment at the decision by some groups of organizations to mine at a national park like the Kakum National Park.

“That is a very bold statement from the Minerals Commission, and let me applaud the Minerals Commission for acting urgently to alleviate the fears of Ghanaians. It is not only High Street that applied according to the statement issued by the Minerals Commission. There are fourteen other applicants who have applied to the Minerals Commission to mine at the Kakum National Park. Now the question is, are this people Ghanaians? Why would anybody or a company or a Ghanaian think about mining in the whole Kakum National Park?”.
Vincent Ekow Asafuah Esq.

Rising Deterioration Of National Reserve Through Illegal Mining

Again, Mr Asafuah bemoaned the high level of deterioration of the natural resources of the country including the country’s major forest reserve which has been destroyed through the activities of illegal mining.

According to him, despite the New Patriotic Party and President Akufo-Addo’s administration effort to control the menace of illegal mining, there is still a certain group of people who are determined to mine without licenses, a situation he described as ‘unfortunate’.

The Old Tafo Member of Parliament thus urged state agencies responsible for the protection and preservation of the natural resources of the country particularly the state national reserve to discharge their mandate in the spirit of nationalism to the country to prevent the further deterioration of the country’s forest reserve.

“I recalled in 2017, His Excellency Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo when he had the opportunity to be the primus-inter-pars of the people of Ghana, he made mention of the fact that he was going to put his presidency on the line, concerning illegal mining at the time. When the President said this I remember he had to place a ban on illegal mining; that is what he did in 2017.
“Now after the ban in 2017, the President also introduced what we called the MMIP, that is the Multilateral Mining Integrated Project to reform and regularize the whole mining sector so that the government would see the extent of deterioration of the illegal mining. State agencies such as Forestry Commission and Minerals Commission must be proactive to help the government fulfil its promise”.
Vincent Ekow Asafuah Esq.

Additionally, Mr Asafuah denounced claims that the government has failed in its fight against illegal mining as promised by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo in 2017.

The Minerals Commission in a statement issued on Monday, November 13, 2023, communicated to the general public that it has rejected an application from High Street Ghana Limited for a mining license within the Kakum National Park.

Responding to concerns raised by Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), the Minerals Commission dispelled claims of an attempt by a mining firm called High Street Ghana Limited to operate within the Kakum National Park in the Central Region.

The Commission’s statement reiterated that the application by High Street Ghana Limited was unequivocally rejected and, as a result, holds no validity or consideration.

“The Commission wishes to inform the CSOs and the public that the application by High Street Mining Company Limited was rejected and therefore cannot be processed or considered whatsoever. The Commission wishes to assure the public that no mineral right whether for prospecting or mining shall be considered or granted in the Kakum National Park”.
Minerals Commission