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The Minority in Parliament has urged President John Dramani Mahama to immediately take disciplinary action against the Birim Central Municipal Chief Executive (MCE), Solomon Kusi Brako, over allegations that he is encouraging illegal mining activities (galamsey) in the municipality — an act they say directly undermines the government’s anti-galamsey campaign. Addressing journalists, the Second Deputy Minority Whip, Jerry Ahmed Shaib, alleged that the MCE had publicly admitted to collecting fines from illegal miners, some of whom are said to be National Democratic Congress (NDC) branch executives in the Akim Oda area. He revealed that some miners allegedly paid as much as GHC15,000 without receiving official receipts or following standard financial procedures. “The Minority Caucus in Parliament is scandalised by the admission of the Municipal Chief Executive of the Birim Central Municipality, Solomon Kusi Brako, that illegal miners were fined various sums of money for illegally mining in the Akim Oda environment and released to continue their illegal activities,” Mr. Shaib stated. He further claimed that the MCE had taken money from some illegal miners only to later direct the National Anti-Illegal Mining Operations Secretariat (NAMOS) to burn their equipment, prompting outrage among those affected. “This was after some of these illegal miners, who describe themselves as NDC branch executives, had cause to complain because the same MCE who took money from them directed the National Anti-Illegal Mining Operations Secretariat, NAMOS, to their site to burn their equipment. We are asking the President to take charge of the activities in the Akim Oda municipality or constituency,” he added. Mr. Shaib called on President Mahama to intervene immediately and hold the MCE accountable for his conduct. “Today, our press conference here is to ask His Excellency, the President, to call this Municipal Chief Executive to order. If the President genuinely wants to fight galamsey, the MCE is just doing the opposite of what the President intends, if at all,” he stressed.
