NAIMOS pounces on illegal miners on Christmas Day

The Western Regional Minister,Mr. Joseph Nelson, has called on the Minerals Commission to establish a permanent and strengthened presence in the Nzema East Municipality following a major anti-illegal mining operation that led to arrests and the seizure of heavy equipment.

According to the Minister, a permanent Minerals Commission office in Nzema East is critical to improving regulatory oversight and ensuring that mining activities across the three Nzema municipalities and adjoining areas are properly monitored and controlled.

His call follows an anti-galamsey operation conducted on December 24 along the Ankobra River, which resulted in the arrest of two Chinese nationals and the disabling of five excavators.

The operation was spearheaded by the National Anti-Illegal Mining Operations Secretariat (NAIMOS), with support from the Western Regional National Security Liaison Officer, Brigadier General Musah Whajah (Rtd.), and other security agencies

The Nzema East Municipality has in recent years emerged as a hotspot for illegal mining, with extensive farmlands along the Ankobra River severely degraded by galamsey activities.

In a bid to restore the affected lands, the Nzema East Municipal Assembly in July 2025 granted Namova Ghana Limited a permit to rehabilitate illegal mining sites within the Domenase, Bamiakor, Awurazo and Akango communities.

However, the company is alleged to have abused the reclamation permit by engaging in illegal mining activities instead of restoring the degraded land, leaving large excavated pits unfilled.

Security sources indicated that during an earlier riverine operation, the taskforce cautioned the company to strictly limit its activities to land reclamation.

Despite this warning, a subsequent joint operation by the Western Naval Command and the Second Infantry Battalion on December 24 discovered that the company had excavated a new mining pit and installed a washing plant, discharging polluted wastewater directly into the Ankobra River.

This development occurred in spite of a revocation letter issued earlier by the Nzema East Municipal Assembly under the Local Governance Act, 2016 (Act 936), and other applicable laws, withdrawing the company’s permit.

During the operation, the taskforce arrested two Chinese nationals found at the site and disabled five excavators by removing their control boards.

Addressing the media, Brigadier General Whajah (Rtd.) issued a stern warning to illegal miners operating in the Wassa Amenfi districts, stating that the taskforce’s next operation would be focused on that area.

Meanwhile, Mr. Nelson reiterated the need for the Minerals Commission to maintain a continuous presence in Nzema East, stressing that stronger institutional oversight is key to protecting water bodies, farmlands and livelihoods within the Nzema enclave.

 

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