Obuasi, Nov. 20, GNA - Mr. Joseph Kwadwo Boampong, Obuasi Municipal Chief Executive (MCE) has challenged AngloGold Ashanti to invest more in the infrastructure development of Obuasi.

"You compare Obuasi to mining cities such as Johannesburg and others whose gold deposit may not be as rich as Obuasi and you cannot but lament at Obuasi's plight. The company needs to inject a lot more of capital into Obuasi's development."

He told the company "your environmental and safety practices are globally acknowledged as commendable, as evidenced by your ISO 14001 Certificate, yet the status of Obuasi where the gold is mined is not commensurate with the acclaimed pedigree of the company". Mr Boampong who was addressing a jubilant crowd after a float to celebrate the company's certification in ISO 14001 at Obuasi said "it will not be far-fetched to suggest that one dollar out of every pound of gold produced should be used for the development of Obuasi." ISO 14001 Certificate was given to the company last year for practicing and maintaining internationally-accepted environmental management practices.

"An ISO 14001 compliant company without any major positive impact on the larger Obuasi Community means nothing to us. Let us therefore not only see AngloGold Ashanti as a mighty company, but let us also feel it. At the moment, we do not feel it."

Mr. Boampong congratulated the company for not only obtaining the ISO 14001 Certificate, but also maintaining it, stressing "obtaining ISO 14001 Certification for me is one thing and going through compliance to maintain your certification is an even more daunting task." Mr. John Miller, Managing Director of AngloGold Ashanti (Obuasi) said the company was a responsible entity, which took environmental issues seriously.

He explained that ISO 14001 in itself cannot protect the environment but it was a system to help the company and the entire people in the municipality to protect and effectively manage the environment.

Mr. Miller indicated that the system was a powerful tool, which helped the company to measure its performance. He reminded the people that they had a responsibility to support the system so that "we make a sustained and improved progress in the maintenance of the environment."

Mrs. B.A. Prempeh, Obuasi Municipal Director of Education, who spoke on "it is cheaper to protect than clear", said it was important for the society to make concerted effort to operate in a healthy and clean environment.

"What all of us must not lose sight of, is that if individuals and organization should make it a point to keep their environment clean by adopting the right attitude, there would be no need for government to spend money clearing the filth", she said. 20 Nov. 07