The Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ) has been petitioned to investigate government officials for their alleged involvement in illegal small scale mining (Galamsey).
The petition dated 25th April 2023, filed by South Dayi Member of Parliament, Rockson-Nelson Dafeamekpor, which was authored by his counsel, Nii Kpakpo Samoa Addo said “We have our client’s further instruction to also petition your office in respect of allegations of corruption, conflict of interest and abuse of office made by Charles Bissue, the former secretary of the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Illegal Mining, against Prof. Kwabena Frimpong-Boateng, former chairman of the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Illegal Mining (IMCIM), in respect of matters involving the 500 Excavators that were supposedly missing around February 2020.
“Our client informs us that the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Illegal Mining (IMCIM) was established by the President of the Republic of Ghana in 2017 to clamp down on illegal small scale mining also known galamsey, after a successful public campaign by the Media Coalition Against Galamsey.
“Our client also informs us that the IMCIM which was headed by Prof. Kwabena
Frimpong-Boateng was tasked to, among others, ‘sanitise and regularise smallscale mining activities in the various mining districts to ensure that miners work within the legal framework’ established by the laws of Ghana to protect the miners themselves and the environment as a whole. Our client informs us that a report of the IMCIM dated 19th March 2021 and confirmed to have been authored by Prof. Kwabena Frimpong-Boateng, cites
various public officials and other individuals for corruption, conflict of interest and
abuse of public office.”
The petition followed the brawl involving a former Minister for Environment, Science, Technology and Innovation, and Chairperson of the erstwhile Inter-Ministerial Committee on Illegal Mining (IMCIM),Professor Frimpong-Boateng and some government officials over galamsey.
Prof Frimpong-Boateng in his report on the IMCIM cited several government officials including the Minister of Information Kojo Oppong Nkrumah.
Mr Oppong Nkrumah and almost all the other officials cited have denied the allegations.
The Presidency further said the report of the IMCIM could only be rightly referred to as a catalogue of personal grievances and claims by Prof Frimpong-Boateng.
The seat of government said the document was handed to the Chief of Staff at the Office of the President on March 19th 2021, in an informal meeting, where Prof. Frimpong-Boateng complained about public attacks and criticisms made about his tenure as Chairperson of the IMCIM. This was after Prof. Frimpong-Boateng’s tenure as Minister had not been renewed by the President of the Republic in his second term.
“The document did not have a transmittal or cover letter nor, indeed, an addressee, such as to suggest that it was submitted to the Chief of Staff for action. It is noteworthy that the IMCIM was a creature of Cabinet, and any formal report on its activities would, normally, be submitted to Cabinet through the Cabinet Secretary, or directly to the President of the Republic as Chairperson of Cabinet. Till date, Prof. Frimpong-Boateng has done neither,” the statement said.
It added “It is important also to point out that, whilst Prof. Frimpong-Boateng makes serious allegations against some government appointees, as having been involved in, supporting or interfering with the fight against illegal mining, not a single piece of evidence was adduced or presented to enable the claims to be properly investigated.
“Indeed, the allegations contained in the document are at best hearsay. It is instructive that since Prof. Frimpong-Boateng’s meeting with the Chief of Staff in March, 2021, he has taken no step nor acted in furtherance of the matters contained in the document.”
It further stated that the President’s commitment to fighting illegal mining is unassailable, and the Office of the President welcomes any information on illegal mining activities which provides a credible basis for investigations to be conducted by the Criminal Investigations Department of the Ghana Police Service.