The Member of Parliament for Akwatia Constituency, Bernard Bediako Baidoo, has expressed worry over a recent JoyNews Hotline Documentary titled “A Tax for Galamsey,” which exposed alleged illegal taxing of galamsey operations in the Amansie Central District of the Ashanti Region.
In an interview on Nhyira FM’s “Kro Yi Mu Nsem,” Mr Baidoo described the practices as unfortunate.
He finds it disturbing that the district assembly is taxing equipment the government has banned, specifically mentioning ‘chanfang’ machines.
“It’s unfortunate because the documentary shows they’re collecting tax on mining equipment, including chanfana machines. We all know the government has banned chanfang machines, so why are they collecting tax on something that’s been banned?” he told host, Barima Kofi Dawson.
The MP says the government’s interest to investigate the exposé following a petition to the President indicates President Mahama’s reset agenda is yielding results.
“We should commend President Mahama for quickly ordering the sector minister to investigate the Galamsey Exposé. Similar cases have surfaced before, but nothing was done, so this demonstrates that the reset agenda is on course, and Mahama is a savior of this country.”
He is confident President Mahama will not spare anyone found guilty after the investigation, as he has been warning appointees against getting involved in such acts.
“President Mahama has consistently warned his appointees against involvement in such practices, making it clear that no one will be protected if implicated.”
Mr. Baidoo stressed that the issue at hand should not be politicized.
According to him, the investigation should cover the entire Assembly’s management, not just the DCE.
“In the documentary, it was revealed that the money collected from these miners went into the Assembly’s account, so it’s not the District Chief Executive who is using his own task force to collect the money and keep it for himself.”
He commended Joy News for the investigative work, stating that exposing such issues will help draw the government’s attention, prompting necessary actions and reforms to address the problems.
DISCLAIMER: The Views, Comments, Opinions, Contributions and Statements made by Readers and Contributors on this platform do not necessarily represent the views or policy of Multimedia Group Limited.
DISCLAIMER: The Views, Comments, Opinions, Contributions and Statements made by Readers and Contributors on this platform do not necessarily represent the views or policy of Multimedia Group Limited.
Source: www.myjoyonline.com