Omanghana
The Bono Regional Security Council (REGSEC) has seized 11 excavators, eight tricycles and 32 motorbikes during operations targeting illegal mining sites across the region.
The exercise forms part of an intensified campaign against illegal mining, commonly known as galamsey, and the environmental destruction associated with the practice.
Bono Regional Minister and REGSEC Chairman Joseph Addae Akwaboa said the seizures demonstrate the council’s firm commitment to protecting communities, farmlands and water bodies from the harmful effects of unauthorized mining.
Speaking to journalists in Sunyani, Akwaboa rejected suggestions that REGSEC had reduced its anti-galamsey operations. He maintained that security agencies remain actively involved in identifying illegal mining locations and removing equipment used by unauthorized operators.
The regional minister, however, stressed that the government and security agencies cannot defeat illegal mining without support from residents. He called on traditional authorities, community leaders and members of the public to provide credible information about illicit mining activities in their areas.
As part of efforts to strengthen enforcement, REGSEC has submitted the locations of identified active mining sites to the National Anti-Illegal Mining Operations Secretariat (NAIMOS). The move is expected to improve coordination between regional and national security teams and support further operations against illegal miners.
The seizures come amid growing concern over the destruction of agricultural land and the pollution of water bodies in parts of the Bono Region. Residents in municipalities including Berekum East and Berekum West have reportedly raised objections and planned community protests over the environmental damage caused by illegal mining.
REGSEC’s latest operation forms part of a wider, multi-regional campaign by security agencies to dismantle illicit mining networks and confiscate machinery used to degrade the environment.
Source: Omanghana
