It remains to be seen, what steps the government will take after the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, publicly lamented that illegal miners had overran a gold prospecting concession belonging to him.
He revealed that unauthorized mining was taking place on the concession without his knowledge, raising serious questions about who is responsible for the environmental destruction from the illegal mining operations which have devastated the banks of the Tano River. "I have heard that the concession Ayisi [former chief executive of the Minerals Commission] granted me has been overrun by illegal (galamsey) miners.
But I don't even know the place," he said on February 14, 2025, when the Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, visited him at the Manhyia Palace in Kumasi. "The concession was given to me, and I intended to develop it, only to hear that illegal miners had taken over," Otumfuo Osei Tutu said. "If I am accused of engaging in galamsey as a traditional ruler, what can I say when I do not even know where the place is?" His remarks have brought The Fourth Estate's scrutiny to Bodukwan Holding Company Limited, the entity holding the concession, and its links to the Manhyia Palace.
Investigations by The Fourth Estate suggest that despite having only a prospecting license, extensive mining has taken place on the concession, raising legal and environmental concerns.
