AngloGold Ashanti Ghana has been given a directive aimed at restoring law and order at its Obuasi concession.
An earlier statement from AngloGold copied to Citi Business News, expressed the mining company’s wish to keep their concession under strict scrutiny when they rid it of illegal mining activities.
‘The directive to clear the site of illegal mining by 10 October was given by the Minerals Commission which, along with a multi-stakeholder committee it established, has prepared an alternative site nearby for the miners to relocate to. Even though the original deadline for a cessation of this unauthorized mining activity had passed, The Minerals Commission continues to work with key stakeholders to move the illegal miners from the remaining parts of the concession, whilst ensuring areas already secured are not reoccupied.
On Tuesday, 18 October, the Security Task Force took the first steps to restore safety and security to the Obuasi concession, which was invaded by illegal miners in February 2016.
Their activities started with the fenced, operational areas of the mine and, once secured will move to other parts of the concession.’
Per the statement, Security Task Force had been tasked to help evacuate the illegal miners from their lands through the use of a ‘roadmap’.
‘ The Minerals Commission subsequently amended the roadmap indicating that areas within the AGAG Mining lease which had been secured by the security agencies should remain secured – and therefore free of illegal mining activity — while the “unauthorized miners” in those areas were relocated in accordance with the road map developed.
AGAG continues to work closely with the Minerals Commission, while urging authorities (including MUSEC, the Security Agencies, the Minerals Commission and all relevant stakeholders) to restore law and order peacefully, as they did during the limited deployment in late July when they cleared the Sansu Lizard Face and Wawase areas’.
Speaking to Citi Business News, Managing Director of AngloGold Obuasi Eric Asubonteng said he is hopeful the directive which is backed by the Minerals Commission will bring law and order to their concession.
‘Last week the security task force deployed to defend the vocational area in Obuasi to start the process of defending law and order.
This first operational area is a smaller part of our concession which houses a lot of our infrastructure, offices and working areas that is the first step they have taken coming up with a criteria.
We are trying to restore law and order luckily the Minerals Commission did come out to provide clarity and the position they have put out there is to say that any areas that have already been secured by the security agents should remain secured irrespective of whatever road map is in place’.
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By: Jessica Ayorkor Aryee/citibusinessnews.com/Ghana