Member of Parliament for Builsa South, Clement Apaak is calling for an investigation into allegations by Prof. Kwabena Frimpong-Boateng that ‘People in the New Patriotic Party (NPP), people in gov’t and people at Jubilee House’ are engaged in illegal mining (galamsey).
Prof. Frimpong- Boateng was Minister of Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation and head of the anti-galamsey fight when President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo first launched the initiative to eliminate illegal mining in the country.
The former Minister made some startling revelations on galamsey during an interview on Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC) in the past week.
According to him, allegations that he carted some 500 excavators away to unknown destinations were palpable lies.
He alleged that was an orchestrated scheme in the NPP and even within the government to get him out.
He said, “Why is it that everybody is in the forest when I left? At that time you dare not enter the forest but as I said, I don’t want to go into details now because I have a lot to say about that.”
“But I can tell that I did not take one excavator away for anything and do you know the truth, these are coming up, we know those who are behind it and the party people who are there, people in government including Jubilee House who are doing galamsey and so on, even now.”
Hon Apaak who wrote on the allegation argued that galamsey is a crime and those involved must be punished.
“Ghanaians expect the requisite state agencies/institutions (OSP, BIN, CID) to show loyalty to Ghana by initiating investigations into the allegations made by Prof. Boateng. By his stature and previous position in this NPP gov’t, these allegations cannot and must not be ignored,” he said.
He urged CSOs, organised labour, the clergy and all well-meaning Ghanaians to canvas for an investigation into these allegations that elements in the Presidency, gov’t and NPP are engaged in galamsey, and consequently, the pollution of rivers and destruction of the environment.