Member of Parliament for North Tongu, Samuel Okodzeto Ablakwa exposed the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP), for overly issuing out mining licenses without caution.
According to the MP, with the fight against galamsey at its peak, the government should have stopped issuing out mining licenses and leases but it is not showing any concerns for citizens with its actions.
Speaking on Metro TV on the destruction illegal mining activities and causing in Ghana, he stated, “Will you believe it. That in the midst of all were discussing, the galamsey threat, one would’ve thought that those in charge would’ve stopped issuing out new licenses because all the environmental activists are advocating for the change. They say there is no difference in pollution between those doing the illegal small scale mining and those doing the legal mining, there is no difference, they all engaged in pollution. One would’ve thought that there will be some sort of suspension in the issuance of license, would you believe that it is now that licenses are being issued more than ever before.”
Okudzeto Ablakwa indicated that records from the Ghana mining repository points to the fact that there has been over 2000percent increase in the issuance of license from the time the NPP took power from the NDC.
This year alone, the number of licenses issued surpass that of what the NDC issued in 8 years.
“This year alone between January and September as many as 70 licenses have been issued. Between September and August, 38 mining licenses have been issued. Indeed on the date September 12, they issued 12 licenses. These licenses were for small scale mining and forest reserves
“Between 2009 and 2016 when you go into the Ghana mining repository this is the 2009 to 2016 records. The era of professor Mills and John Mahama. The issuance of small scale mining leases were only 56 in 8 years. I decided to do same for 7 and a half years (this is the Akufo-Addo era). You see how fat it is, 1,503 licenses have been issued. 56 against 1503 in the same period,” he added.
#FightAgainstGalamsey: In 8 years, while the Mills/Mahama gov’t gave out 56 small-scale mining licenses, the Akufo-Addo/Bawumia gov’t has given out 1,503 – @S_OkudzetoAblak #GoodMorningGhana #MetroTV pic.twitter.com/j04KbTBwx2
— Metro TV Ghana (@metrotvgh) September 13, 2024
