The Ashanti Regional Minister, Dr. Frank Amoakohene, has confirmed that armed illegal miners have returned to the Jimirah Forest Reserve and the Offinso Shelterbelt.
Dr. Amoakohene disclosed this during a working visit to the Bekwai Municipality on Friday, September 5, 2025, where traces of illegal mining were also observed along the road leading to Kokotro.
He said a police unit, supported by the regional task force against illegal mining, had been deployed to confront the situation.
This development comes barely a month after a joint operation involving the Ghana Police Service and the Forestry Commission led to the seizure of excavators from the same forest reserve.
Speaking to the press, the minister called on the public to take a proactive role in combating the menace by quickly reporting suspicious activities to the National Illegal Mining Secretariat.
“We received the same information and immediately dispatched the police task force on illegal mining to respond. Usually, when such reports surface in the media first, it becomes difficult to catch the perpetrators because by the time our teams arrive, they are gone. That is why we encourage citizens to call the secretariat directly so we can act swiftly and make arrests,” he explained.
Dr. Amoakohene further emphasized government’s determination to eliminate illegal mining in the Ashanti Region and across Ghana, describing it as a “destructive canker” that must be uprooted.
Source: Adomonline
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