MP for Asene Akroso Manso Denies Captain Koda’s Intervention in Release of Confiscated Excavators

Asene Akroso Manso Member of Parliament (MP) for the New Patriotic Party (NPP), George Kwame Aboagye, has denied claims that Edmund Kwadwo Koda (Captain Koda – retired) intervened for the release of his excavators that were confiscated by the Task Force of the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Illegal Mining (IMCIM).

According to Prof. Kwabena Frimpong-Boateng’s report to the Presidency on the work of the IMCIM in 2021, when the Task Force impounded two excavators at a site near Anyinam and deposited them at the Anyinam Police Station, Captain Koda allegedly made frantic telephone calls requesting for the excavators to be released. The task force was informed that the owner of the concession, George Kwame Aboagye, the MP for Asene Akroso Manso, was his brother.

However, Mr Aboagye, in a note to Prof. Kwabena Frimpong-Boateng, denied the allegations stating that Captain Koda had no hand in the release of the excavators. He claimed that the excavators belonged to a legal mining company that had obtained the necessary licenses and permits to operate in the mining industry in Ghana.

During an inspection of one of the mining sites in Anyinam, the IMCIM Task Force confiscated two out of three excavators because the site had two open dams instead of one. The dams were being used as reservoirs due to limited access to water resources, and there was no natural water body in proximity to the site. The IMCIM took possession of two excavators temporarily to ensure that the third excavator covered the dam and reclaimed the land. The media accompanying the IMCIM reported that the dam was recovered within a week, and the excavators were subsequently released upon compliance.

Mr Aboagye denied participating in or being associated with illegal mining activities (galamsey) in the country. He has only participated in legal and regulated artisanal and small-scale mining. Mr Aboagye’s company, Kocbad Ventures Limited and Kesuadom Enterprise Limited, are licensed and conduct their mining activities in accordance with the laws of the land, mining regulations, and best practices for the international mining industry.

For the most part, Mr Aboagye’s note refutes the allegations against him, stating that Captain Koda had no hand in the release of the excavators, and the excavators were legally owned by a licensed mining company. Mr Aboagye also denies participating in illegal mining activities, and his companies follow all mining regulations and best practices.

Source: Graphic Online