Newmont Fails To Resettle Affected Residents In Spite Of Court Order

Newmont Ghana Gold Limited has failed to fulfill its promise of resettling some 25 households who were directly affected by activities of the mining company at Dormaa-Kantinka in its Ahafo Mines Area within six months.

However, for almost two years now, the Company is yet to complete the houses to be occupied by the affected residents. The situation is extremely unbearable and poses serious health threat to the affected residents since some of them are overcrowded in the single room rented for by the company.

The 25 households were residents of Dormaa-Kantinka, a farming community near Kenyasi, whose place of abode was inundated within the enclave of Newmont’s Subinka East Waste Dump area of the mine, and thus warranting resettlement houses for the affected persons.

Newmont Ghana Gold Limited initially contended not to resettle the affected residents, however with the help of WACAM and Centre for Public Interest Law, human rights Environmental NGOs, the affected residents took the company to court.

The Accra High Court (Human Rights Division) in July 2018 in its ruling ordered Newmont to resettle the residents of 25 households at Dormaa-Kantinka. This followed protracted disagreement between the parties as to whether the people were eligible for resettlement or not.

According to Monica Kuma, a 32-year old divorcee with five children, “as per the agreement signed with Newmont, the company is authorized to rent our temporary residences. However, our rents have expired over the last three months amidst ejection threats by the landlords. We appeal to Newmont to settle the outstanding months to save us from the barrage of embarrassments.” We are all crowded in a single room amid this COVID19.

A visit to the site by a group of Journalists, revealed that the houses were at different stages of completion but abandoned and taken over by weeds. Speaking to one of the affected residents, Ibrahim Kwarteng, said “Newmont promised to complete the buildings in six months’ time but it’s over two years now. I myself, wife and four children are still packed in a rented single room. The situation is extremely unbearable and poses serious threat to our health

Responding to concerns raised by affected members, the Communications and External Relations Manager of Newmont Ahafo Mine, Samuel Osei, said, all the 25 housing units for the affected persons are almost ready, pending finishing activities like electricity connectivity and fumigation of the houses before the official handing over to the people.

According to Mr Osei, the 25 resettlement housing units were ready to be occupied in April this year but the company had to hold on to address a request from the leadership of the Project Affected Persons to have the new housing units fumigated before they are handed over to them.

The fumigation process of the housing units is currently ongoing and will be completed by the end of July. We are working with the leadership of the house owners to ensure a smooth handover of the houses,”

On the issue of the Company owning three months’ rent, Mr. Osei stated that Newmont had been paying for the temporary accommodation and will ensure that the outstanding three months’ rent are paid as they prepare to move into their new houses.