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The Member of Parliament (MP) for the Manso Nkwanta Constituency, Mr. Joseph Albert Quarm, has appealed to the Minerals Commission and the government to revoke the licences of large-scale miners who have “abused and misused” their rights by subletting portions of their concessions to individuals to indulge in illegal mining.

He alleged that apart from individuals, some large-scale miners, as well as all classes of mining groups, were deeply involved in the act and it was time the government took a second look at the law and possibly reviewed it.
 
Mr. Quarm was contributing to a discussion during a Town Hall meeting organised by the Media Coalition Against Galamsey and the National Commission for Civic Education at Manso Nkwanta in the Amansie West District in the Ashanti Region last Friday.

Red Friday

The event, dubbed: ‘Red Friday; Say No to Galamsey,’ was the first in the series of meetings for key actors in the galamsey business including some small-scale miners.

He said some large-scale mining companies could not be exempted from contributing to the galamsey menace and they must equally be held liable.

Mr. Quarm, who has also been at the forefront of the fight against galamsey, said it was time for the policy of giving concessions to expatriates to be reviewed and the opportunity provided for Ghanaians to compete favourably for slots.

Currently, only 10 per cent of Ghanaians own such concessions at the large-scale level but he said it could increase if the law was reviewed.

The Convener for the Media Coalition Against Galamsey, Mr Kenneth Edem Ashigbey, warned District Chief Executives (DCEs) found culpable in illegal mining that they would be reported to the appropriate authorities and possibly removed from office.

He said it was strange that DCEs who were heads of the district security councils were mostly either unaware or pretended to be unaware of illegal mining activities in their jurisdictions.