KEY POINTS
- Akyem landowners risk losing lands forever if leased to illegal miners.
- Traditional council will reclaim abandoned lands with open pits
- Land use for development is prioritized over individual profit.
Okyenhene Osagyefuo Amoatia Ofori Panin has cautioned landowners in Akyem Abuakwa State that if they give out their lands to the unauthorized miners their lands will never be recovered.
This strong message is part of measures to mitigate the effects of the illegal mining activities, which have been degrading the environment, and affecting the health of people in the affected region.
Illegal mining and its consequences
The Okyenhene made his speech during a durbar organised by the Gyaase division of Akyem Abuakwa State. He pointed out that any land used for the activities of the illegal miners would be taken over by the Akyem Abuakwa Traditional Council and kept forever.
Other land that has been vacant, with many open pits, will also be taken back by the council to ensure that these areas are made secure as well as structurally whole. He pointed out that it will be permanently alienated from the stool and thus landowners cannot retrieve their lands again.
According to MyJoyOnline, the Okyenhene stated further that illegal mining pollutes water and soil, making it harmful to people. He noted that through their harmful chemicals, people are born without limbs or with other deformity. He criticized landowners who give miners their land a warning that mining has negative impacts not only on the physical environment but future generations as well.
Development over profit
During durbar, Okyenhene equally dismissed persons who failed to let go of their lands for development projects.
He told the community that although people occupy the land, the stool has the paramount interest in all the lands in the state. In other words, if the state requires a piece of land for a development project, then the state can, while fairly compensating the owners.
Okyenhene’s speech was part of his 25th-anniversary tour, where he visited the five divisions of Akyem Abuakwa State. The grand celebration will take place on October 12, 2024, at the Akyem Abuakwa State Capital in Kyebi. The event will feature chefs from Akyem Abuakwa and beyond, celebrating the culture and unity of the region.
