John Yaro, Public Relations Officer (PRO) for Nanlamtaaba Enterprise, has strongly rejected several claims made by the Alliance for Gban Development during its recent press conference over the ongoing mining dispute in the Gbane community of the Upper East Region.
Responding to the allegations, Mr. Yaro challenged assertions concerning the mining status and legal standing Zongdaan Boyak Kolog popularly known as Poloo,” as well as claims about security protection allegedly being provided to him.
According to him, contrary to claims that Boyak Kolog does not have a mining licence, he is currently operating as a small-scale miner and has been involved in a legal dispute with the Minerals Commission since 2020.
He explained that the Minerals Commission had issued a licence in connection with the disputed concession, prompting Boyak Kolog to seek legal redress.
“He went to court because the Minerals Commission issued a licence over his licence in 2020. He went to court and obtained an injunction against the Minerals Commission and the so-called international act,” Mr. Yaro stated.
He further claimed that the High Court had issued orders restraining certain parties from undertaking activities around the concession involving Nanlamtaaba Enterprise.
According to him, the court orders affected the operations of the company and also placed restrictions on certain state officials in relation to the dispute.
Mr. Yaro therefore questioned claims that Puyak Kolog was operating without a valid licence.
“If he has no licence, how can the Republic give him police protection?” he asked. “The man has no licence. How can police protection be applied in support of him?”
He urged journalists and the public to critically examine the various claims being made by the parties rather than accepting allegations without asking questions.
The Nanlamtaaba PRO also addressed the issue of security personnel allegedly protecting Boyak Kolog.
He disputed suggestions that the individuals providing security were unregistered or unknown entities, insisting that they were private security companies.
He also maintained that police presence around the disputed mining area was real, although the personnel might not always appear in uniform.
“The police are always with us,” Mr. Yaro said, adding that he personally has police protection wherever he moves.
He questioned whether critics expected police officers to be visibly present in uniform before acknowledging their presence.
According to him, the security arrangements were intended to maintain peace and protect people within the area rather than demonstrate support for one side of the dispute.
Mr. Yaro further said Nanlamtaaba Enterprise had decided to respect the current stop-work directive affecting the parties involved in the dispute.
He indicated that the company was prepared to appear before the relevant authorities in Accra to present its case and provide clarification on the issues surrounding its operations.
“We have a stop-work order within Earl-International and Nanlamtaaba. We are going by it. We will be invited to Accra, and we will go and make our case,” he stated.
He dismissed the Alliance for Gban Development’s allegations as lacking substance, describing them as an attempt to divert attention from the substantive issues surrounding the dispute.
“Nanlamtaaba is a registered company,” Mr. Yaro stressed.
The latest development adds another layer to the ongoing tensions surrounding mining activities in Gbane, with the two sides presenting sharply different accounts of the legal status of the mining operations, security arrangements and the circumstances surrounding the disputed concession.
Source: Apexnewsgh.com