Savanna Research and Advocacy Network (SRAN), in a press release has said, they appreciate the principled judicial position taken by His Lordship Justice Alexander Graham on not meeting interested people in the mining cases before him.
According to SRAN, if Ghana had two of the likes of his Lordship Alexander Graham in every region, the justice system would regain its reputation as a beacon of hope for the rule of law.
Read the full release below:
PRESS RELEASE JUSTICE AT LAST!
BOLGA, 27TH MARCH, 2023
Ladies and gentlemen of the media and civil society, we are grateful to you for keeping faith with us through thick and thin.
We appreciate the principled judicial position taken by His Lordship Justice Alexander Graham on not meeting interested people in the mining cases before him. It gives us the hope and confidence that there can be justice in this our judicial system. That despite the rough, influence buying and nepotism in this country there are few people in our state institutions who can rise above these ills in our society that are dragging us to Armageddon.
If Ghana had two of the likes of his Lordship Alexander Graham in every region, the justice system would regain its reputation as a beacon of hope for the rule of law. In the absence of judges like His Lordship Justice Alexander Graham, many have suffered a great deal of oppression, humiliation and even lost their lives.
Kudos to civil society organizations in the region such as National Patriots Against
Injustice & Corruption (NAPAIC), Talensi Mining Communities Initiative (TAMCI), Savannah Research & Advocacy Network (SRAN), etc. for their vigilance and prompt action whenever their surveillance trackers discover injustice against the people, especially in the mining communities.
You would recollect that in 2019, the Concerned Citizens of Talensi, a pressure group that emerged to advocate for community development, equity and responsible mining that protects life, property and the environment, raised concerns about the purported behaviour of the Paramount Chief of Talensi Traditional Council.
The group accused him of interfering and using his power as the Paramount Chief to abuse land owners, other traditional authorities who don’t agree with him, and claiming to have supervisory jurisdiction of lands, water bodies and trees in Talensi.
You would also recollect in the famous Edward Adeti Expose’ that former Regional Minister and Minister of State in Charge of Special Duties, Mr. Rockson Bukari, at the presidency was caught on tape saying that the Paramount Chief of Talensi had asked him to kill the story of an investigative journalist because it would implicate Shaanxi. Here is a clear case of a state official wanting to kill a story that is unfavourable against a foreign mining company that is engaged in unsavoury exploitation of our mineral resources.
What happened last Friday, 10th March 2023, is testament in support of the Concerned Citizens of Talensi that they have been making the right calls all these many years, for justice, responsible and sustainable mining in Talensi.
We call on the Minerals Commission, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Talensi Traditional Council, the District Assembly and all stakeholders to come together and unite the community to ensure that mining is done responsibly and beneficial to the community and the people of Talensi.
This press release is not to go over what NAPAIC has already recounted but to reinstate what we have been advocating for all these years.
- That we are not against mining, but we want to ensure that mining is done responsibly and benefits communities where it is undertaken.
- That the state must have a share, in fact hold some shares in the mining companies in order to generate income for Ghana as a whole and Talensi land in particular.
- That health and safety needs of miners are guaranteed and miners allowed joining trade unions to fight for their interest and miners must be paid decent wages.
- So far our experience of large scale mining in our communities has shown that our communities have not benefited from mining. Shaanxi/Earl International has been operating for years and we are yet to see what benefits have come to our people. What has been the benefit of local content?
- Roads are destroyed, water bodies are diverted, farmlands confiscated, livelihoods displaced, the environment degraded, and lives lost. All in the name of mining that does not uphold the values and cultures of communities. Mining that does not respect the dignity of the people whose resources are being taken away.
Cardinal/Shandong is preparing to begin large scale mining operations in Talensi. They are also prospecting for gold all over the Upper East region of Ghana. The local content, for example employment for people who are suffering from loss of their livelihoods has been hardly addressed.
We are fighting to ensure that our people and Ghana as a whole benefit from mining. In this light we are calling for transparency and accountability in mining. We encourage government to make licenses, agreements, MOUs, bonds etc. with mining companies publicly accessible. This will enable us to monitor their activities and ensure that they are doing the right thing.
We want to reiterate our demands.
- That Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) of Shaanxi/Earl International and Cardinal/Shandong should be made available for us to study and ensure that mining does not make our lands desolate.
- That the government and Minerals Commission should make it public the percentage of shares that the Ghana government holds in these mining concessions and including the amount of royalties that the two major mining companies are paying.
- That the Minerals Commission and EPA must ensure that health and safety of employees of these mining companies is secured and that they are monitoring these companies to comply with the laws governing mining in the country.
- That the Minerals Commission and the EPA work together to ensure that tailings dams are well constructed and the reclamation bonds of all companies are up to date.
In the saga of the potential bribery and influence by the Tongorana, and his supporters we are rather saddened that the lawyers that were at the court all pleaded for Judge Graham to temper justice with mercy. These are lawyers that represent people and to beg the judge to forgive this wrong doing that has implications for mining across the region is so unfortunate. We call on the lawyers especially the human rights ones to engage in protecting vulnerable people instead of defending influential people who use their influence to exploit the vulnerable. If the judge was sentencing a goat thief, would the lawyers be pleading with the judge to reduce the sentence?
We wish to end here by thanking all those who stand with us to fight for social justice in the Upper East Region. We want nothing less than responsible mining. We want mining to benefit our communities and not just a few. We must always understand that gold is non-renewable resource and unless steps are taken to ensure that we benefit from mining, we will be left with nothing. The mining companies are here to make maximum super profits. It is left for our government and state institutions to ensure that mining is done sustainably and benefits our communities.
We will continue to advocate for social justice in our mining communities and work with like-minded organisations to ensure that we achieve our goal of equity and justice in mining.
Thank you.
Source: Apexnewsgh.com/Ghana
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