Special Prosecutor must recuse himself from galamsey probe - Titus-Glover explains

Nii Kwartei Titus-Glover, a former member of parliament for the Tema East Constituency, has urged the Special Prosecutor, Kissi Agyebeng, to recuse himself from the investigation his office has opened into allegations of illegal mining against some former government officials and members of the New Patriotic Party. the investigation is looking into whether or not these individuals engaged in illegal mining (NPP).

This week, the Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) made the announcement that it has begun conducting investigations into allegations of corruption and offenses related to corruption in connection with unlawful small-scale mining that is commonly referred to as galamsey.

An inquiry is being conducted into a number of governmental institutions as well as the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Illegal Mining, according to a statement that was published on the website of the Special Prosecutor.

"The Office of the Special Prosecutor (OSP) has opened an inquiry into illegal small-scale mining in relation to allegations of corruption and crimes related to corruption. A number of officials from the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources as well as the Forestry Commission are being looked into by the probe. It also targets the activities and expenditures of the now-defunct Inter-Ministerial Committee on Illegal Mining (IMCIM), particularly with regard to the seizure and management of excavators, machinery, road vehicles, and gold nuggets, according to a statement that was issued by the Special Prosecutor, Kissi Agyebeng, on Monday, October 10, 2022.

According to the OSP, the investigation is also focusing on a few private individuals and businesses, such as Charles Bissue, the secretary of the IMCIM, and Akonta Mining Company Limited, which belongs to Bernard Antwi Boasiako alias Wontumi, the regional chairman of the New Patriotic Party for Ashanti Region.

"The investigation includes the active and ongoing inquiry into allegations of use of public office for profit against Charles Bissue, during his tenure as Secretary to the IMCIM. These allegations are the result of an investigative documentary published by Tiger Eye P.I. titled "Galamsey Fraud Part I."

According to the statement that was released, the investigation is looking into "the activities of Akonta Mining Limited and other companies; nationals of foreign countries who are allegedly involved in illegal mining; and allegations of corruption and corruption-related offenses against some Municipal and District Chief Executives and political party officials."

According to adomonline.com, in response to the statement, Titus-Glover said that Kissi Agyebeng must recuse himself from the investigation because he was the lawyer of the well-known investigative journalist Anas Aremeyaw Anas, who led the investigation that resulted in the documentary that implicated Charles Bissue and other individuals.

It is to everyone's advantage that the Office of the Special Prosecutor has joined the fight against galamsey, and we should do everything in our power to support the OSP in this endeavor. We need as much transparency as possible to come out of this to assist us deal with the threat entirely, but he should let his deputies handle it, he said.

This episode of People & Places is also available to view on GhanaWeb TV, and it is as follows:

source:ghanaweb.com