I was a Regular Miner then on secondment to the Adansi District C.D.R. Secretariat during the PNDC era from October, 1983 – 1992 and I was the Chairman for the Investigations and Complaints Department which was later renamed the Arbitration and Complaints Department (ARBICOM) Department. I worked with my fellow miners but my role was very different from theirs, because in my position as a Supervisor which we describe as a (Shiftboss) in mining terms, I was mandated to protect the Corporate Assets of the AGC. As for Sam Jonah, hate him or love him, but he did NOT and had Never dealt leniently with any miner who stole gold products no matter who you are, so if I am asked to give him a percentage, I will mark him 99.9%. The second person is Mr. George Tieku, a former Chief Security Officer of the AGC who will also be given 99.9% for his extreme patriotism and honesty just like Sam Jonah. Naturally, nobody is hundred percent correct except God, but for dirty politics and his frosty relations with former President Rawlings, Sam Jonah would have turned AGC into Heaven. Jonah became a wounded lion when he saw the TV footage of that devastating strike in 1999 and immediately pointed accusing fingers at Rawlings, the then Female Branch Union Secretary of AGC and former C.D.R Cadres and all NDC members including this writer on the Mine which was totally wrong. The Branch Union Secretary was the suspect and Main Target of Sam Jonah and his management team.

207 BENZ BUSES
The striking workers were always conveyed to and from the Miners’ Circle popularly known as “Fagum” daily but when the strike continued un-abated, the AGC management withdrew all its buses. In reaction, the striking workers always boarded 207 Benz buses to the Miners’ Circle daily. Having politicized the Company heavily, the 31st December Women’s Movement with Nana Konadu Agyeman Rawlings as its President was also fingered as the group that mobilized those 207 Benz buses for the miners to continue embarking on that strike – which was totally false. Sam Jonah strongly suspected Rawlings and his wife as the brains behind that strike – it was false, it was rather Sam Jonah whose draconian management style that led to the well organized strike in 1999. The “Ghanaian Chronicle”, “Daily Guide” “The Statesman” and Kweku Baako’s “Crusading Guide” were at their best fanning more embers on the strike for it to continue as they were all blaming President Rawlings and his wife by filling the pages of their newspapers with 100% false stories about the real reasons why the AGC workers embarked on that well organized devastating strike while praising Sam Jonah to the High Heavens, and yet he was the main brain behind that strike in the AGC in 1999 as I have earlier stated. Nobody or group of persons can destroy the great NDC, but it is only Leading members of the NDC that can destroy the Party with Power Struggles, individualism, and Complete Dis-unity as it was started in 2010 up to 2012, in a crucial election year and it seems to be un-ending. Well, in the Abundance of WATER, the FOOL becomes VERY THIRSTY. Coming events cast their shadows. A child who knows how to wash his hands properly always eat with Big Men on the same table - this is an African Proverb, so this writer was eating on the same table with Big Men. Frankly speaking, Sam Jonah’s brains were choked with Politics and Foreign Values, but I could not tell him because my hands were in his mouth since I was a regular miner between 1996 – 2000. How could such a man expect miners not to go on strike? The entire mine became a “Konkonsah” headquarters since his frosty relations with Rawlings which was in high gear by 1998. Therefore, after the general strike in 1999, the Branch Union Secretary who was a very intelligent Lady was framed up on trumped up charges and finally, removed. The miners did not sit down again, they laid down their tools for two days to compel AGC management to re-instate her but returned to work on the third day – They were all dismissed together with t he Union Secretary with my spies around Sam Jonah feeding me with credible information. I always go to work with 7 men during that brief strike in support of the Union Secretary and we always rested at a safe place underground and returned to surface. The information I had was that, if I had stayed home even for one day, AGC management would have capitalised on that to say that I supported that illegal strike – It backfired completely – only few people knew that Mr. George Tieku, the former Chief Security officer of AGC was a former Director of the Special Branch now (BNI) in the whole country, and so, if I had associated myself with such a former Security Operative and listened to all his advices, how on earth could anybody trap me. You dare not, rather I will uproot you alone or in a group like cassava. The AGC Security Men worked like Bulls and they are all very patriotic up to date 2012. After closing from work one afternoon around 3pm in 1997, a pot bellied former Senior Manager of AGC sent me from the Kwesi Mensah Shaft (KMS) to the Adansi Shaft to collect a parcel for him. I agreed and took my motor – bike to go and collect the said parcel for him. Before going, I looked round, and saw 5 of my planted spies around that manager, so I was happy that what ever came out from that man’s mouth, would be revealed to me when I returned because he was being investigated for organizing a group of miners whose main duty on the mine was to go and blast all gold bearing rocks ANYWHERE on the mine and then smuggle them out to share with him. This man never touched his monthly salary from the AGC but saved them in the bank for 2 good years, he depended on those illegal miners to be feeding him through the theft of gold products, so investigations were far advanced and he was to be interdicted the following week to allow full investigations to go on. I was sent one Thursday, so immediately I took off with my motor bike, this Manager bragged that Ah! In fact, the day that he will get me, he would sack me within 2 seconds. Within 30 minutes, I met the man who was to give me the parcel after I introduced myself to him, he felt at home and started singing like a bird to me. Here is the “LAMPO” for manager, tell him that the Security Man nearly arrested us so we buried 25 sacks of pure gold, underground, so tell him that he should not be angry with us just because we were not able to bring the 25bags to the surface. We shall all buy articulated trucks and resign from the AGC when we bring out the Gold. This innocent miner did not know who he was actually talking to, so I told him that he and his gang should be very careful with those “Foolish Security men” even Sam Jonah was the “Bigger Thief” as well as George Tieku, the then Chief Security Officer – the miner felt very much at home and was relaxed. So he showed me the exact location where they buried those 25bags of gold underground, their Modus Operandi, to elude the AGC Underground Security Patrol and told me to go with that parcel and also come for my share. I never went there after all. Armed with this credible information, I quickly relayed it to the appropriate quarters after leaving Adansi Shaft. Therefore, when my spies told me about the remarks of the Manager who threatened to sack me within 2seconds if he should ever get me would rather leave AGC in 2seconds by next week before I leave the Company as a worker later, so I confidently promised my spies that the manager would not be in office by the following Wednesday because he was a big thief. True to my words – that “pregnant” Manager was interdicted and later fired and all the 25bags of hidden gold retrieved from underground and sent to the gold treatment plant. A number of 7miners who had been undertaking that illegal activity were also dismissed. In mining, the word “LAMPO” – means – Monies accrued through illegal activities on the mine – it could be gold, it could be the stealing of Company’s cement or stolen items like iron rods, car spare parts or office equipment from the Company. If Sam Jonah could sack his own junior brother for stealing gold, who else could be left off the hook? When word went round that the Senior Manager who bragged to the workers that he would sack me in 2seconds was rather fired by A.G.C Management before the following Wednesday – the workers had more confidence in me and provided more information.

SAM JONAH AND THE TRIBUNALS
The former powerful C.E.O of AGC believed that all suspected miners being prosecuted at the Public Tribunal on suspicion of gold theft MUST LEAD TO CONVICTIONS, so those suspected miners who were ACQUITED AND DISCHARGED by the Tribunal were all dismissed by the AGC Management. When you sack an innocent worker, you have sacked his wife and children, you have sacked his extended family members and his children will automatically be dropped from school. Sam Jonah will never consider all these at all – but will only do what pleased him.
Finally, you have CUT SHORT their future ambitions. These were some of the MAJOR CHARGES against Jonah, that led to the 1999 strike, but who will tell him – well, in an attempt to tell him without provoking him, I once asked him the reason why suspected miners who appeared before the Tribunals for allegedly pilfering gold products could not be re-instated in the AGC to work when they were acquitted and discharged by the Tribunals – He had this to say: But everybody is aware of what goes on there? People bribe the Tribunal Penelists and go scot free – oh! I see – he replied – so don’t you know it? I said I never knew that – the matter ended there. Anyway, In The Abundance Of Water The Fool Be Comes Very Thirsty. It will be re-called that Comrade George Agyekum was the Chairman of that Tribunal who sat on all gold cases in Obuasi and he was so honest and patriotic nationalistic minded that Nobody, Repeat Nobody Could BRIBE him or any of his panel members at all during those trying times of the 31st December Revolution in 1984 – 1989. Corruption in Ghana was 1% nationwide between 1982 – 1989. Mr. Agyekum was 99.9% in the delivery of Justice and will never call, Black, White at all. He jailed both billionaires, millionaires and the poor alike but Jonah alone had serious reservations about him. His reasons were that the Public Tribunals were established by the PNDC government led by J.J. Rawlings.



JONAH’S UNPOPULARITY IN OBUASI
If Sam Jonah, the former C.E.O. and President of AGA is NOW UNPOPULAR in Obuasi; it was caused by HIMSELF, and no single person or group of persons in Obuasi or Ghana in general. His unpopularity was not caused by the Rawlingses, it was NOT caused by Members of the 31st Women’s Movement or former C.D.R. Cadres as he falsely believed between 1995 – 1999. It was not caused by those innocent hard working Miners who were wrongfully dismissed because of their political beliefs in Jonah’s Political fight with Jerry Rawlings. Today, nobody will now buy Sam Jonah’s name for GH¢1.00 in Obuasi – apologies to Prez. Mills. He was my former best friend and he must rather pray for forgiveness every Sunday in Church and must not blame anybody for causing his unpopularity in Ghana and Obuasi in particular – Is that clear? As a Cadre, I do not hate him but I rather hated his general bulldozing behaviour when he was the C.E.O. of AGC from 1984 – 1999 and beyond. I have forgiven him for all that he did to me, so may God richly bless Sam Jonah, until we meet another time. This article is written by a former miner who was working right inside the Heart of The Beast namely; the huge Elephant which was the original logo of the AGA. from 1973 – 2003 – 30 good years in Obuasi, before the logo was changed into twin crocodiles.
Keep your fingers crossed and read the final part of How I Eluded Rawlings Security Operatives While I Worked as a Miner on Secondment to the erstwhile C.D.R. Secretariat in Obuasi. Those latter Day Saints in the NDC from 1996 – the year 2000 must NOT JOKE with me at all. Is anybody Listening? I am done but I shall return when the need arise. Aluta Continua! Jaanbie Iwaii.


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