The Tufuhene of Gwira Assuawuah in the Nzema East Municipality of the Western Region, Nana Addae Blay V, has described as outright falsehood claims by the Deputy Minister for Lands and Natural Resources that the Ankobra River has regained its clearer nature.

The debate if the Ankobra River is regaining its clearer nature was re-ignited when the deputy minister of Lands and Natural Resources, George Mireku Duker visited the area recently and circulated images to indicate that the river was gaining its original state in a bid to underscore that government’s efforts in fighting galamsey was yielding the desired results.

But his claim has been vehemently refuted by the Chiefs of Gwira Assuawuah and other towns who say the river remains polluted due to illegal mining and the deputy Minister only did that to score cheap political points when his claim is far from the truth.

According to the Tufuhene of Gwira Assuawuah, Addae Blay V, he and his elder undertook a tour of the river and were utterly shocked why the Deputy Minister will put out such falsehood.

“The place the Deputy Minister stood and shot the picture of the river is called Sahuma which is the bank of the Ankobra, that’s where the Ankobra meets the sea. At a particular period of the year, the sea overflows and uses pressure to push the river Ankobra as far as an area called Dominase, so that period of the year, you’ll realize that the sea has washed the dirt from the Ankobra and the river is very clean. If you don’t take care you’ll think that is the real state of the river.

“The deputy Minister’s action is not the first by a politician. That has been the laziest approach by politicians. Whenever we talk about the poor state of the River Ankobra, the politicians wait for that particular period of the year when the sea washes the river, and then they move the media there and take shots to claim that their efforts have restored the river to its original clean state. That is disingenuous on the part.”