Residents in the Amansie Central areas of Gyaman and Bepotintin are calling for the immediate arrest and prosecution of Asia Huang, a notorious Chinese lady alleged to be engaged in illegal mining.
The call comes in the wake of the death of six children who are said to have fallen into some uncovered pits belonging to the Chinese lady.
Some farmers who are livid about the lady’s activities in the area also recalled how the lady cheated them after agreeing to pay for the cocoa farms she destroyed to facilitate her ‘illegal’ mining operation.
Agya George Anane, Bepotintin Dikro insisted the activities of Asia Huang who is popularly referred to as ‘Aisha’ is destroying several arable lands and water bodies in the Amansie District.
He, therefore, called for a halt to the activities of the lady since future children would have no land to farm or work on if the lady is given such an unfettered access to the lands of Bepotintin.
DEATHS:
Speaking to the Ghanaian Observer Newspaper during a tour of the areas mentioned, a former Assembly member for the Bepotintin electoral area, Janet Gyimah narrated how kids have been dying in the area after they fell into pits belonging to the same ‘Aisha’.
According to her, the kids during their normal play time mistook the water at the uncovered pits to be shallow and therefore decided to jump in and play.
But, unfortunately as she narrated, two kids fell into the steep pit and died.
The other four children, the former assembly member disclosed also died at similar pits along the Bepotintin area where the Chinese lady is operating other ‘illegal’ business.
COLLUSION:
Jacob Salifu, a resident at Gyaman, a nearby community to Bepotintin revealed police and military men have been escorting the lady anytime she visited the community.
According to him, town folks who have farm lands close to the sites of the lady have to run anytime the lady visits due to the presence of heavily armed military and sometimes police escorts.
Mr Pascal Manyo, a Ghanaian Small Scale Miner mentioned how the ‘all conquering’ lady visited his site which has been allocated to him by Volta Resources Mining Limited and threatened him to vacate the site.
After resisting with his friends and workers, Mr Manyo narrated the lady came back with some police men to intimidate him.
Mr Edward Koranteng, Legal Consultant for Volta Resources Limited indicated the community would need about GHC 600,000.00 to reclaim the land that had been destroyed by the Chinese lady.
He was surprised no one in government seemed concerned about the destructive activities of the Chinese national.
RESPONSE:
Speaking to the paper on the issue, Deputy Ashanti Regional Minister, Andy Osei Okrah said a task force had been formed to deal with the reported destruction of arable lands by illegal miners.
He, however, admitted the name of Aisha had come up during a recent Regional Security Council Meeting (REGSEC) and the team had been tasked to conduct an investigation into the activities of the Chinese lady and others who are alleged to be doing same in the region.
In a related development, Mr Okrah suggested the recent swoop carried out by the former National Security Liaison Officer for Ashanti, Enoch Amoako Nsiah was done without the approval of REGSEC.
According to him, the REGSEC deemed the swoop as illegal and therefore recommended the Police at Finaso where some four excavators and a pick up vehicle impounded was to be released to its owner, Madam Asia Huang.
