Six communities in the Amansie South District of Ashanti-Manukrom, Groso, Abroad, Alhajikrom, Kyerekyerekrom and Tabosre have protested vehemently against the destruction of the Oda forest by Kingsperg, a Chinese Mining Company.
Holding placards with inscriptions like; “Stop destroying our forests”, “Stop destroying our food stuffs” and “ let’s stop galamsey and preserve our forests”, the protesters from the six communities marched through Manukrom amidst singing of war songs to send their message across to the government.
Speaking to the media later, Nana Akwasi Amoah, the Odikro of Manukrom and the Spokesperson for the communities said the Chinese company for the past five weeks since they pitched camp at the forest has caused massive destruction to several hectares of farm lands and the entire forest that has been preserved over the years.
He said when the leadership of the communities approached them, they had the effrontery and boldly said they had the blessing of the government to do their business and would not stop.
The Odikro said some farmers, who dared to go and collect food stuffs from their farms, were threatened with death and called on the government to state its position on the emerging disturbances in the area.
The assemblyman for the area, Mr. Sylvester Fosu, said “these miners just entered the forest since their arrival some weeks ago without showing any document to the custodians of the land and went on to mine.”
He said he has contacted the MP for the area, as well as the DCE and both of them have denied any knowledge of the presence of the company in the area.
Some of the community members told The Chronicle that they have been farming in the area to raise money to cater for the educational needs of their children and remarked that, “with the destruction to our farms, we are helpless and do not know what to do”.
Both the MP and the DCE could not be reached on phone for their comments on the issue.
From Frederick Danso Abeam, Manukrom
