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Mr. Godfred Yeboah Dame Addresses Accusations of Hiding Government Official Complicity in Galamsey
The Attorney-General, Mr. Godfred Yeboah Dame, has strongly rebuffed the allegations made by the National Democratic Congress (NDC) concerning his involvement in covering up government officials’ roles in illegal small-scale mining, locally known as ‘galamsey.’ Mr. Dame characterizes these allegations as perplexing, dubious, and mischievous.
The NDC’s National Communications Officer, Mr. Sammy Gyamfi, had accused Mr. Dame of being complicit in concealing government officials’ involvement in galamsey activities.
It is noteworthy that the Attorney-General had provided a legal opinion on the ‘galamsey’ report, concluding that, “in the absence of any evidence on the docket in support of any of the allegations of illegal mining activities, we are unable to recommend the prosecution of any of the persons cited in the Report. They should, therefore, be discharged. We, however, await the outcome of the investigations conducted in the case involving Seth Mantey, John Ofori Atta, and Ekow Ewusi.”
Addressing the NDC’s accusations during a press encounter, Mr. Gyamfi suggested that the Attorney-General’s legal opinion was an attempt to conceal the complicity of government officials and the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) in the illegal galamsey trade.
In response, Mr. Dame clarified that the docket provided to his office by the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) was a specific inquiry into allegations made by Prof. Kwabena Frimpong-Boateng against individuals named in his report. It was not a comprehensive investigation into galamsey issues across the country, as the NDC had portrayed.
Mr. Dame emphasized that the conclusions reached by the Chief State Attorney pertained only to those specific allegations. He underlined that prosecutions for galamsey offenses, including those in forest reserves and water bodies, continued nationwide.
Despite the NDC’s accusations, no concrete evidence was presented by the party to support the allegations against individuals mentioned in the report.
Mr. Dame regarded the NDC’s press conference as part of a series of attacks on him for decisions made in his role as Attorney-General, decisions that the political party considered contrary to its interests.
Individuals named in the Frimpong-Boateng report included Laud Commey, Charles Nii Teiko Tagoe, Frank Asiedu Bekoe (known as Protozoa), Hon. Joseph Albert Quarm, Charles Owusu, Kwadwo Owusu Afriyie, Captain (Rtd.) Edmund Kojo Koda, Donald Entsuah, and an unnamed former Member of Parliament for Wassa East Constituency. Seth Mantey, John Ofori Atta, and Ekow Ewusi were implicated in the sale of excavators, while Gabby Asare Otchere-Darko, Hon. Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, and Kwaku Baako Jnr. were linked to actions indirectly inhibiting Professor Frimpong-Boateng in his work.
