Obuasi, May 30, GNA- The management of Anglogold Ashanti (Obuasi) has issued a strong warning to illegal miners to stay off its concessions as the company has started the destruction of all illegal mining pits identified within the area. The company is using heavy earth-moving machines and the firing of explosives to cover those illegal pits. The company, to ensure that no illegal miner was injured in the process has made several radio announcements and the posting of warning notices on the pits about the company's intentions, but the illegal miners are ignoring them.

Colonel Steve Oduro Kwarteng (Rtd) the company's Asset Protection Manager who conducted newsmen round some of the pits, expressed concern about the manner some of the illegal miners had started re-activating the already sealed pits. At the Ellis Shaft and West Walley top forest area, the newsman were shown dotted illegal pits constructed by the miners which are yet to be destroyed.

Col. Oduro Kwarteng, who was accompanied by the pits destruction squad, wondered why the illegal miners should compete with the company's workers underground and in most cases threatened the lives of the workers.

"Everyday, we hear they are underground competing with our miners and even threaten their lives" he stressed. Col. Oduro Kwarteng said the company was really facing challenges from the "galamsey" operators as "All efforts we are putting in to prevent them from the mine was being overlooked".

He said almost everyday, new illegal pits were discovered and added "these illegal miners are indeed disturbing our operations". The Asset Protection Manager added that as a result of the operations of the illegal miners, the re-vegetation programme, which the company has spent millions of dollars on was being destroyed. He gave the assurance that the sealing of the pits will be an on-going programme to check the activities of the galamsey operators. It would be recalled that the Country Manager of Anglogold Ashanti, Mr. Ernest Kofi Abankroh, recently briefed the Asantehene Otumfuo Osei Tutu II on the activities of these illegal miners at Manhyia in Kumasi. He noted that apart from being against the laws of the land, their activities were dangerous both to their own lives and community. The Asantehene suggested to the company to team up with the Ashanti Regional Security Council to come out with a programme to address the problem.