The Chief Executive Officer of the Petroleum Hub Development Corporation, Dr. Anthony Aubynn, has raised concerns over political interference in the fight against illegal mining, commonly known as galamsey.
Dr. Aubynn stated that the involvement of politicians in the menace, despite its devastating impact, is undermining the fight.
“The worst of it all, and I have said and written about it since 2009, so it’s not a new thing, the worst of it all is the involvement of politicians in this business. It becomes so difficult to resolve when you have politicians, some of whom are in very leading positions, involved. You can’t successfully push them out,” he said in an interview on Accra-based Channel One TV.
Highlighting the complex and deeply entrenched nature of galamsey, Dr. Aubynn noted that vested interests make meaningful reform extremely challenging.
To support his point, he recalled former President Akufo-Addo’s public defense in January 2023, when he categorically dismissed claims that Akonta Mining Company Limited was involved in any illegal mining activities in Ghana.
“That is how come, I think, the former President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo at one point in time said Akonta Mining was not doing anything illegal, even though the facts spoke otherwise,” he said.
Akufo-Addo’s defense came at a time when many groups and individuals demanded punitive measures against the company and its owners, led by the Ashanti Regional Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Bernard Antwi-Boasiako, popularly known as Chairman Wontumi, for alleged illegal activities in the Tano Nimiri Forest Reserve in the Western North Region.
Subsequently, the Mahama-led administration revoked the company’s license following “overwhelming evidence” of illegal mining and criminal syndication.
ALSO READ: