By Beatrice Oppon
Director of Volta Resources Limited, Nana Kofi Sarfo Prempeh has told the Accra High Court that the activities of alleged illegal miner Aisha Huang have caused tremendous devastation to the company’s concessions, rendering its exploration programme not feasible in the areas she mined.
Nana Sarfo Prempah, who is the third prosecution witness and also a Divisional Chief at Asante Akyem Agogo Traditional Area said Aisha Haung encroached on the Company’s concession covering an area of about 70.89 square kilometres in the Amansie Central District.
He said all efforts to evict the accused from the land and to stop her illegal mining activities proved futile.
Giving his Evidence before the Accra High Court in the ongoing trial of the alleged Chinese illegal miner Aisha Huang, Nana Kofi Sarfo Prempah, an investor and owner of Volta Resources Limited, said in 2013, the company entered into an agreement with a company called Realistic Enterprise to transfer its concession in the Amansie Central District to Volta Resources. He said the company duly acquired its concession and prospecting license from Realistic Enterprise in an agreement which was approved by the Minister of Lands and Natural Resources.
According to Nana Prempeh in 2015, Aisha Huang began her mining operations on the concession of Volta Resources Limited at Gyaaman and later moved her activities to another part of the company’s concession at Bepotenten where her Chinese workers were arrested in May 2017.
He said a report of her encroachments and illegal mining was made to the Regional Security Coordinator in the Ashanti Region and the traditional authorities of Bekwai. He said in February 2016, Volta Resources Limited made a formal complaint at the Police Headquarters and a team of investigators were tasked to address the problem but to no avail. He said on April 13, 3017, the Circuit Court in Bekwai granted an interim injunction against the accused person to restrain her from mining on the Company’s concession.
Nana Sarfo Prempah further narrated that the company also caused the publication of the encroachment and devastating effect of the illegal mining activities of Aisha Huang on his concession and the effect on the host communities.
He said in June 2017 following the arrest of Aisha Huang, Volta Resources Limited wrote to the Inspector-General of Police complaining about the failure of the arresting officers to seize the mining equipment of the accused person which were in use at the time her alleged Chinese employees were arrested at Bepotenten. The Case has been adjourned to Monday, November 21.
