Galamsey: How ‘C&G Alesksa’ mining destroyed 24,000 acres of virgin forest reserve in Denkyira

C&G Alesksa, a mining company owned by foreigners but which boasts of “strong local connection” has with the help of Chinese Galamsey operators destroyed an estimated 24,000 acres of Ghana’s virgin forest reserve in Diaso and other areas in the Upper Denkyira area of the Central Region of Ghana, MyNewsGh.com reports.

Other virgin forest areas affected by the Mining company’s activities include Aminase Forest Range Reserve, the Tonton Forest Reserve also in the Upper Denkyira District of the Central Region, stretching all the way to the Western Region, where even timber logging is banned.

A drone shoot of the “raped” virgin forest reserve shows burnt stretches of land, uprooted timber, razed down trees, polluted water bodies and uncovered pits, as evidenced of illegal mining activities.

This comes at a time controversial investigative journalist Anas Aremeyaw Anas is said to have done some undercover work on galamsey which is yet to air.

Head in-charge of Government Inter-ministerial Task-force Against Galamsey, Mr. Francis Asibi-Abu said they will make sure C&G Alesksa Mining Company paid for its crimes against the people of Ghana.

He revealed that ‘C and G Alaska’ had unfortunately operated ‘secretly’ in the forest reserve for seven years without a designated license except for a prospecting one.” That license didn’t give them power to mine or to sell concessions to others to mine.

C&G Alesksa sold several thousands of concessions to illegal miners to mine deep in the middle of the Diaso virgin forest which was uncovered by the Anti-Galamsey task-force using drone technology.

The miners who were fully armed with assault refiles and pistols told the Taskforce they bought the virgin forest concession from C&G Alesksa for Ghc50,000 and were required to make weekly payments of between Ghc20,000 and Ghc100,000 depending on the size of the concession and how much gold they get.

An assessment of the extent of damage to the Forest Reserve showed 24,000 acres in different areas of the forest had been burnt down and cleared for mining activities by C & G Alesksa at the blind side of authorities.

More than 25 excavators were seized from the many Chinese and their Ghanaian collaborators who were arrested as captured by drones.

C&G Alesksa, Major Mahama, Kennedy Agyapong

C&G Alesksa Mining company is alleged to be one of the mining companies around whose mining concession late Major Mahama was said to have been guarding in the Denkyira area before his lynching.

Quite interestingly, C&G Alesksa is the same mining company Kennedy Agyapong alleged last year that Kweku Baako and Anas have some dealings with.

The famously loud Member of Parliament for Assin Central, Kennedy Agyapong had alleged earlier that the Kwaku Baako together with Anas are involved in galamsey through C&G Alesksa.

According to him, “I have dig Kweku Baako and his boy (Anas) very well. I have documents to suggest that he owns a mining company called C&G and he has been managing this company for years.”

Kwaku Baako consequently sued him.

I only linked C&G Alesksa to Mahama, Akufo-Addo

Kwaku Baako has, however, come clean on his “relationship” with the controversial mining company, C&G Alesksa. He admitted he knows them.

Mr Baako said he intervened for C&G Alesksa under NDC when John Mahama was president by ensuring a petition they wrote got to the President’s desk. He said this on July 24th 2018 on Peace FM Kokrokoo.

“I know about that company (C&G), I got to know about that company in September 2016 because they were a victim of galamsey operations in that place where Major Mahama was killed.” Kwaku Baako had said.

“They were a lot of intrigues within the Mahama administration and the Minerals Commission against that company.” He explained.

“The company brought a petition . . . and they called my attention to it and I made sure that petition was sent to President Mahama, and I, I called President Mahama and told him of the illegal minning activities going on there with his own people in charge.”

He added that under NPP in 2017, the company had problems again which required him to step in to help them again due to the change of government; and he did.

Mr Baako said he ensured C&G Alesksa’s letter to President Akufo-Addo got to him.

In Mer Baako’s own words:

“When the NPP was declared winners, the day of declaration, the NPP guys in that constituency invaded the concession, burnt cars and things because they claimed it belonged to the NDC.”

“The NPP element also took over the Galamsey operations in the forest, these are facts, these are documented, they are on audio, they are on video, those who were interrogated and things are all here,” he told Kwami Sefa Kayi.

“A similar petition, a petition that was sent to President Mahama also I sent to President Akufo-Addo. I facilitated the transmission of that,” he explained himself.

“Illegal mining is not part of my DNA. I have never engaged in illegal mining…I don’t even understand it. I have never and will never engage in illegal mining; it cannot happen and it will not happen”

Source: ghanaweb.com