Government has relaunched Operation Halt II, in it bid to clamp down on illegal mining activities and the devastation being caused to the environment.
This came to light when the Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Hon. Samuel A. Jinapor, addressed a press briefing at the Ministry of Information on Thursday, 13th October, 2022.
Operation Halt II was first launched in April 2021, to remove all persons and mining equipment from water bodies and forest reserves in the country, including decommissioning and demobilising equipment where necessary.
It is made up of personnel from the Ghana Armed Forces, the team worked on major river bodies, such as, Pra, Offin, Ankobra, Birim and Ayensu, as well as forest reserves in the country.
As a temporary measure, Operation Halt II relaxed its operations when some of the river bodies started showing signs of clearing up. But with the resurgence of illegal mining activities across the country, the Minister says the operation has been relaunched, after a review of the earlier operation.
He said the Operation will run alongside other measures being implemented by the Ministry, such as, the declaration of river bodies as red zones for mining; the suspension of reconnaissance and prospecting activities in Forest Reserves, except in exceptional cases; the ban on the manufacture, sale and use of Changfan; the procurement of speed boats to patrol the river bodies; the recruitment of river guards, to support the protection of the river bodies; the introduction of mercury-free gold Katchas; the establishment of eighty-three (83) Small Scale Mining Committees in all mining districts in the country; the revamping of Community Mining Schemes; and the introduction of the National Alternative Employment and Livelihood Programme which now engages about eighty thousand (80,000) people in alternative livelihood projects.
Mr. Jinapor said the new Operation Halt II, which was relaunched on Tuesday, 11th October, 2022, was well thought-through, reformed to take care of the current resurgence of the galamsey menace and funding has been secured to ensure its sustainability. He said the Operation is being run concurrently in the Southern, Central and Northern Commands, and already, twenty (20) excavators and scores of changfans and other mining equipment have been decommissioned.
According to the Minister, the Operation Halt II team have been instructed to use their discretion whether to decommission or seize equipment, and this is to be done without any interference from any person whatsoever. He said the team will be held accountable for anything that happens in their operations, and thus are not supposed to take instructions from anyone, including him, the Minister.
The Minister said the Ministry has submitted to the military high command details of all licenced mining operations in the country, to guide them in their operations, and they will be assisted by mine inspectors and personnel from the Criminal Investigations Division (CID) of the Ghana Police Service, to gather evidence for prosecution. He said Government was committed to ensuring that anyone found culpable is made to face the full rigours of the law.
The Minister also said following the meeting between the President and the members of the National House of Chiefs, the Minerals Commission has been directed to ensure that chiefs make an input into any application for a mineral right before a recommendation is made to the Minister.
Mr. Jinapor called on all citizens, and particularly the media, to assist Government to come to grips with this canker. He said the media must take a lead role in educating the general public about the consequences of illegal mining on current and future generations, as well as the punishment for engaging in illegal mining. He added that he was optimistic that with the support of the media and citizenry, Government will deal with the menace.
