The Enchi District Court has decided to grant bail to four suspected illegal miners and allow them to retrieve their confiscated mining equipment, a situation that has sparked outrage among Ghanaians.
According to journalist and anti-illegal mining advocate Erastus Asare Donkor, who shared copies of the court’s ruling, the suspects had been arrested for illegal mining in the Boin Forest Reserve by the Forestry Commission. However, the court not only granted them bail but also directed the commission to release their two excavators and other equipment. The court’s verdict document read:
The complainant being the Forestry Services Division, Enchi District, shall forthwith allow the applicant to evacuate and relocate the two (2) Lingong excavator machines and other mining equipment from the forest reserve to a place of his choice outside the reserve.
The ruling further instructed that the relocation must be supervised by the Enchi District Police Commander and completed within three days, with the culprits covering all associated costs.
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The applicant shall bear the full cost and expenses associated with the evacuation and relocation of the two (2) excavators and the other equipment in issue. The applicant shall complete the evacuation and relocation within three (3) days from the date of this order.
The ruling has triggered massive backlash, with many questioning the commitment of authorities to fighting illegal mining, popularly known as galamsey, which continues to wreak havoc on Ghana’s forest reserves and water bodies.
Expressing his frustration, Asare Donkor slammed the court’s order as a “slap in the face.”
So, the Forestry Commission and the Enchi police arrested four persons who were mining illegally in the Boin River Forest Reserve on Sunday, 23rd March 2025. They impounded two excavators found in the forest. They processed them for court and confiscated the equipment. Now the court has granted them bail and given an order directing the Forestry Commission to release their machines to them.
He also questioned why the provisions in the Forest Protection Act of 1974, which outlines strict penalties for illegal mining in forest reserves, were seemingly ignored in the ruling.
The court says the FC should allow them to cart their excavators out of the forest to any location of their choice. And it has subsequently ordered that the police should ensure that the suspects are able to do so within three days. Question is, what happened to provisions in the Forest Protection Act 1974?
The fight against galamsey has been a long battle that has seen an uproar in the last few months, with involvements from Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) and labour forces alike following concerns of environmental health.
