The MCE for Prestea Hunni-Valley should be removed from office for his lack of knowledge of galamsey around GRIDCo pylons

If it is true that the Prestea Hunni-Valley Municipal Chief Executive (MCE), Mr Mozart Kwaku Owuh, actually said he does not have knowledge of the existence of the illegal miners whose activities are done close to the pylons of GRIDCo. Then he should be sacked, like the DCE of  Amansie South DCE he is not competent enough to be representing the President in the municipality, heading the Municipal Mining Committee and Municipal Security Committee. I pray that the President will dismiss all MCEs/MCEs who are sleeping on the job like Mr Mozart Kwaku Owuh and galamsey is destroying our country. 

The impact of Galamsey on GRIDCo transmission lines due to activities within their Right of Ways is a fact that GRIDCo has advocating about for a very long time. They have made presentations during the Media Coalition Against Galamsey’s town hall meeting. They have videos that they have shot showing the impact and for an MCE not to know and provide them with some reprieve and protect this national resource is completely not acceptable. 

Excavation for gold around the GRIDCo structures have seen severe flooding of the lines each time there were rains and this could likely cause the towers to collapse, I am not sure if the MCE know how many people will die when one of these pylons collapse and what it will cost Ghana. Galamsey has made it difficult for the GRIDCo technicians to carry out checks on high tension cables and power towers found in some mining areas.

The power distributor might not be able to respond to emergencies within these catchment areas should there be a power trip which could result in outages in several communities within the transmission area. They will be unable to carry out maintenance works on its transmission lines within the Galamsey Areas. The activities of the illegal miners have severely undermined the structural integrity of the towers that support the conductors, making them highly vulnerable to collapse. The impact again will be catastrophic when it happens not if it happens because of the lack of actions of leaders like the MCE is calculated to make it happen. It will not be an accident, it will be planned due to inaction.

Although the GRIDCo had engaged chiefs within the transmission zone, it is noted that “these illegal miners are way beyond the control of chiefs. I expect that the MCE like Mr Mozart Kwaku Owuh who has control over the security forces, including the Intelligence Team should be able to do better. These galamseyers carry the most sophisticated arms and are heavily connected and all these people that fund them and provide them protection should all be exposed by the media.

I know that GRIDCo has had to mobilized to conduct an occasional helicopter patrol along the lines and deploy bulldozers to create alternative routes to the towers and the sub-station to enable the company carry out the needed maintenance works. GRIDCo cannot tour all the transmission lines using helicopters because such an exercise was expensive. Who pays for this, it is not from the gold that is mined, but you and I as shareholders of GRIDCo, it is our cash. We need to be angry about the inactivity and lack of knowledge of our MCEs and DCEs including Mr Mozart Kwaku Owuh

Read the story done by Kwesi Alfred Adams of The Chronicle, a very credible newspaper, I have no reason to doubt them at all. I hope that the media will follow up on the story to find out what Mr Mozart Kwaku Owuh has done on this case that was carried on thechronicle.com.gh on 20th August 2019. I will bring it to the attention of the Regional Minister this is not acceptable.

Despite the war that has been declared on illegal mining by the Akufo-Addo government, operators of the trade are still not bothered and continue to wreak havoc on the environment with impunity.

This time, not only have they moved from the pollution of the water bodies, but also to the destruction of high tension electricity pylons erected at a high cost to the taxpayer.

A Video evidence in the hands of The Chronicle speaks of the alarming rate at which these galamsey operators are digging close to two high tension pylons at Brumasi, a suburb of Prestea in the Western Region.

Available information indicates that the galamsey operators are undertaking the illegitimate venture at the blind side of local government authorities.

An eye witness who sent video evidence to this paper narrated that the speed at which the operators were digging close to the pylons at an obscure corner poses danger to the entire Prestea community and the nation as a whole.

“They are doing the galamsey in Brumasi, deep in the forest and considering the location, the galamsey operators are able to spot anyone coming close to the area”, the eye witness said.

He further told The Chronicle that the area manager of GRIDCO had complained several times about the dangers ahead if illegal mining activities are done close to the pylons, but the advice has consistently been ignored.

The Chronicle gathered independently that though the boys behind the illegal activity are known in the Prestea community, they have still not come on the radar of the anti galamsey task-force Operation Vanguard.

Meanwhile, the Prestea Hunni-Valley Municipal Chief Executive (MCE), Mozart Kwaku Owuh, in a telephone interview declined knowledge of the existence of the illegal miners. MCE Mozart Owuh told this reporter that the area being referred to falls within the concession of Golden Star Resources, a mining company.

Nevertheless, he promised to alert the BNI to verify the information.

An official of the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) has also confirmed the existence of the high tension pylons in the area but was quick to add that the pylons belong to GRIDCO.

Source: Kwesi Alfred Adams, Takoradi|http://thechronicle.com.gh

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