Kwasi Bonzoh, the District Chief Executive for Ellembele, does not think politicians are involved in illegal mining.

Speaking on Eyewitness News, he insisted that “galamseyers are businessmen who take advantage of the political space.”

“We should do this thing [fighting illegal mining] without the political colourisation of the fight,” the DCE added.

Mr. Bonzoh argued further that blaming politicians for illegal mining serves as a distraction.

“When you arrest one galamseyer, the number of calls that you will receive transcends political lines. The moment you politicize it, the real actors get away with it.”

“We are doing the unborn generations a great disservice if we don’t win this fight.”

“If we just look on for people to just destroy our environment, what will my children come to inherit?”

Mr. Bonzoh was recently arrested for obstructing a police search for two missing excavators.

He is contesting these charges in court and is currently on bail.

The DCE further said he did not want the case to be a distraction in the fight against illegal mining.

“Let’s not take our attention off the fight. If we are not careful, in our attempt to interrogate the arrest and the circumstances that led to the arrest, we are leaving the fight that brought this arrest.”