A surprising revelation by Professor Kwabena Frimpong-Boateng, a former chairman of the now-defunct Inter-Ministerial Committee on Illegal Mining, alleges that certain individuals within Ghana have intentionally undermined efforts to combat illegal mining, known as galamsey.
In an interview monitored by Ghana Insider on 3FM, Prof. Kwabena Frimpong-Boateng the former Minister of Environment, Science, Technology, and Innovation unveiled that, some individuals involved in the drone operations for monitoring illegal mining activities deliberately crashed the devices to conceal their involvement in galamsey (illegal mining) activities, impeding the government’s efforts.
Prof. Frimpong-Boateng’s statements have raised eyebrows as he disclosed that the drones, which were procured at a cost of approximately $3 million under the previous administration, faced systematic sabotage. “Some of the districts intentionally crashed their drones,” he stated, pointing to instances where drones went missing or crashed into trees, impeding surveillance efforts from the capital, Accra.
This disturbing claim suggests a deeper entanglement of local actors in the galamsey operations, raising questions about complicity at various levels of government.
The controversy surrounding the drone project is not new; it has faced criticism since its inception in 2017 when then-Lands Minister John Peter Amewu defended the initiative as a necessary step to tackle illegal logging and protect Ghana’s valuable forest reserves. However, Frimpong-Boateng’s comments allege a darker narrative — that not only were drones underutilized, but their operational failures may have been orchestrated by those looking to conceal their own involvement in illegal mining.
In an interview with Blakk Rasta, when questioned about whether the government under John Mahama made strides against galamsey, Prof Frimpong-Boateng refrained from offering further comments, leaving many to wonder about the effectiveness and integrity of anti-galamsey measures.
