Private legal practitioner Nana Yaw Osei has suggested that the state should amend its laws to fight corruption by seizing all properties from those who engage in illegal mining.

In an interview with Prof Samuel Gyasi Fosu on Bresosem, Osei stated that jailing illegal miners is not enough, and the state should seize all properties from those who engage in illegal mining to deter others from engaging in the menace.

“Jailing illegal miners is not enough, considering how these selfish galamseyers have destroyed water bodies, land, and forests,” he stated.

He argued that “experts have warned that food produced from galamsey communities has been affected by chemicals, putting people’s lives at risk. Therefore, there is a need to take proactive measures to curb this menace”.

Aisha Huang Judgement

Lawyer Nana Yaw Osei also commented on penalties the court imposed on Aisha Huang, stating that for a galamseyer, GH¢48,000 is not a significant amount, but because it is the law that imposed such penalties, the country must accept it in that light.

He also emphasized that Ghanaians have been jailed for their involvement in illegal mining, and the argument that Aisha Huang is a foreigner is a non-starter.

"She is not extraordinary or above the law, and the laws should work," he emphasized.

Background

The Chinese national, En Huang, popularly known as Aisha Huang, has been sentenced to four and half years in prison for engaging in illegal mining in Ghana.

Aisha Huang, who has also been slapped with a GH¢48,000 fine, is also to be deported after serving her jail term.

That was after the Criminal Division of the Accra High Court presided over by Justice Lydia Osei-Marfo, found her guilty on the charge of undertaking a mining operation without a licence, facilitating the participation of persons engaged in a mining operation, and the illegal employment of foreigners.

She was also convicted on her own plea in the charge of entering Ghana while prohibited from re-entry.

It was the court’s opinion that the state, led by the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), Yvonne Atakora Obuobisa, has proven beyond reasonable doubt that Aisha Huang committed the crime.