AKONTA MINING COMPANY LIMITED AND 4 OTHERS (PLAINTIFFS) vs. THE ATTORNEY GENERAL AND 3 OTHERS (DEFENDANTS)

The 1st plaintiff held a prospecting licence over a concession at Samreboi in the Amenfi West District. The 5th plaintiff, described as the directing mind of the 1st to 4th plaintiffs, alleged that on 27 May 2013 the 4th defendant and others entered the concession, removed equipment, and later procured GHS 70,000 from him under threat of destruction of the plaintiffs’ investments. The plaintiffs further alleged that on 4 June 2013 members of an Inter-Ministerial Task Force against illegal mining, together with security personnel, entered the concession, looted US$7 million, 50 kilograms of gold, burnt an assembly plant, destroyed imported parts and vehicles, and detained several vehicles. The defendants denied looting and extortion, and contended that the plaintiffs were not merely prospecting but were engaged in illegal small-scale mining, including mining close to and into the Tano River, using Chinese nationals contrary to law. The court accepted the defence case and found that the task force operation was directed at abating illegal mining activities. Portion of judgment: opening narrative on the genesis of the litigation; pleadings at paragraphs 12–41 as reproduced by the court; and the defence pleadings summarised immediately thereafter.

The history of this trial has been a chequered one. I happen to be the 4th judge in line to have had something to do with the matter. By the record, my sister Georgina Mensa-Datsa J started the hearing but could not conclude it. Paul Utter Dery J continued with the matter but it suffered the same fate. The evidence was concluded before my immediate predecessor Edward Amoako Asante J who had to depart to undertake an international assignment. I thus, proceed to deliver this judgment on the basis of the proceedings I, as it were, inherited. Thankfully, the entire proceedings together with the volumes of exhibits were taken over intact with their integrity fully preserved. The genesis of this litigation is traceable to the controversy of illegal mining popularly called “galamsey” in the local parlance. The out-turn of this menace is universally acknowledged. Ranging from the risk of water pollution, health hazards, loss of lives through accidents, to severe environmental degradatio...