The Chief of Whindo in the Effia-Kwesimintsim Municipality, Nana Quasie Essiem IV, is reported to have rejected a cash offer of GH¢2 million along with other lucrative deals allegedly from some Chinese individuals involved in illegal mining.
The Chinese investors, who are said to have arrived in a long convoy of V8 SUVs and were carrying a hefty sum of money, reportedly intended to mine gold in the area near Takoradi in the Western Region, according to a report by graphic.com.gh.
The Chinese nationals, led by a Ghanaian resident of the community, were reported to have arrived with mining equipment including an excavator, changfang machines, power generators, water pumps, and other accessories.
However, they were driven away by Nana Quasie Essiem IV, who firmly warned that illegal mining activities would not be tolerated in her area.
The report stated that the heavy-duty mining equipment brought in by the Chinese investors was transferred to the Western Regional Police Command in Sekondi, within the Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolis, upon the orders of the chief after she seized them.
According to her, she has witnessed the devastating and destructive effects of galamsey and therefore would not trade her community’s future for wealth.
“I need money, we all need money, but I will not accept such money and mortgage the future of the community in the name of money,” she is quoted to have said by graphic.com.gh.
Nana Quasie Essiem IV reaffirmed her strong stance against illegal mining, stating that not even legal documents would change her mind about allowing mining in her community.
“I told him I am against the idea, even if he and the investors brought documents to mine legally, as long as I remain the Chief of the community, I disagree.
“We have seen the threat that these illegal mining activities have brought to mining communities: daily reports about health issues, children abandoning the classroom, drugs and other social vices, among many others,” she said.
In a twist of events, the Chinese investors, together with their local collaborators, returned with excavators, changfang machines, and other mining equipment.
Upon her return, however, she took charge before the police arrived and hired a low bed to haul the equipment to the police station.
“I hired a low bed and hauled the equipment to the regional Police Command for safekeeping. Now, they have to reclaim the land they have already destroyed and face the authorities. I will continue to gather the courage to confront the illegal miners in and around Whindo,” she is quoted to have said.
She added, “As far as mining is concerned, I can assure my people and the nation that it is ‘no’ today, it will be ‘no’ tomorrow, and it will remain ‘no’ as long as I lead the community. Whether you have operating and other necessary permits and licences or not, it is ‘no’. Our land is our livelihood; it is in trust for generations unborn, and we must protect it at all costs.”
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