The Akrofuom District Assembly in the Ashanti Region has formed a permanent task force to tackle the activities of illegal miners in the area.
District Chief Executive Maurice Jonas Woode says the team drawn from various electoral areas will be mandated to identify and register licensed miners and ensure that they are not violating the country’s mining laws in their operations.
“The Government has come out with Operation Vanguard, Galamstop, Operation Halt I, and Halt II, all intended to Halt the activities of illegal miners but with little success. We believe that as an Assembly, setting up an Electoral area taskforce will be the surest way to deal with illegal mining at Akrofuom”, the DCE said.
He expressed his commitment to dealing with the illegal menace and called on all stakeholders in the district to support the initiative. He reminded users of excavators to be registered in the District by Wednesday, 2nd November 2022 as stipulated by the Lands and Natural Resources Ministry.
Assembly to clamp down on social vices
Hon. Woode in his address also revealed that recent data on teenage pregnancy did not put the district in a good light in the Ashanti Region.
This he said has prompted the Assembly to form a community-based social vice taskforce to nip the situation in the bud.
“In relation to this issue, next Tuesday representatives from Nananom, Churches, Heads of families, and the Assembly will form a team to find solutions to children’s involvement in wake keeping, betting and substance abuse in the district”, he added.
Mobilizing funds
The DCE said even though the Assembly has been able to rake in GHC734,323.31 as Internally Generated Funds as against the budgeted GH680,000, as of September 2022, it had to increase its budgeted revenue to GH750,000 to boost revenue mobilization.
He added that the delay in the release of the District Assembly Common Fund has affected the Assembly’s revenue generation and financing of capital expenditure.
“Consequently, we have decided to finance some of our capital expenditure with our IGF. we have therefore decided to find ways to improve our revenue. To achieve this I have tasked Assembly members to develop data for ratable items in their electoral area. I have also tasked them to recommend persons to be recruited as revenue collectors to boost the numbers”, he said.
SOURCE: SAMPSON MANU, ISD OBUASI
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