Deputy Speaker Asks Chinese Envoy To Advise Illegal Miniers

The First Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Joseph Osei-Owusu has appealed to the outgoing Chinese Ambassador to Ghana, Sun Baohung to impress on Chinese nationals involved in illegal mining in the country to stop the practice which is causing destruction to the environment and marring the perfect relationship between the two countries.

He appealed to Ms Baohung to encourage her successor to use his good offices to advise the Chinese illegal miners to desist from such illicit practice.

The First Deputy Speaker said a year after a temporary ban was imposed on illegal mining, popularly known as galamsey, some Chinese nationals, as well as some Ghanaians are still engaged in illegal mining undercover which is thwarting the efforts of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) government to stop the destruction of the environment and preserve water bodies for future generations.

Small-scale mining is only reserved for Ghanaian nationals, but the Chinese have unfortunately not only taken over small-scale mining but they are also doing it illegally which is against the laws of the country thus creating a lot of problems between Ghanaian nationals and their Chinese counterparts in the mining areas, according to the First Deputy Speaker.

“When you come to my constituency, the Chinese have taken over 'galamsey' activities and it is creating a lot of tension between the local people and the Chinese,” he said.

He noted that the Chinese people were initially selling mining equipment to the local miners but they have now completely taken over the illegal mining activities in the area.

The First Deputy Speaker, who is the MP for Bekwai in the Ashanti Region, made the appeal when the outgoing Chinese Ambassador, Sun Baohung, paid a courtesy call on the leadership of parliament to bid farewell and also assure the leadership of the continuous cooperation of the Chinese government with the Ghanaian legislature to strength democracy.

The First Deputy Speaker also used the occasion to appeal to the outgoing envoy to help streamline the application process for Chinese visas and make it open for every qualified Ghanaian to apply for Chinese Visa and not allow agents to fleece visa applicants.

According to the First Deputy Speaker, he has received a lot of complaints about agents who collect fee of $1,000 from applicants before the payment of normal visa fee of $250, adding that the agents are making visa acquisition very difficult for Ghanaians, who want to travel to China to trade for the benefit of the two countries.

The Second Deputy Speaker, Alban Bagbin, who was also present at the meeting, called on the outgoing Chinese Ambassador to encourage her government to establish a Chinese Language Institute in the country where the Chinese language would be taught.

According to him, China has now become a superpower and the second largest economy in the world, with trade volumes between Ghana and China rapidly increasing.

He stressed the need for Ghanaians, who want to travel to China for engagements to learn the Chinese language to facilitate their engagements in China.

In her response, the outgoing envoy said that China would remain a critical partner of Ghana in ensuring fruitful bilateral relationship.

She further explained that her government has never supported citizens of China engaging in illegal mining and that if any Chinese national violates the laws of the country, he or she should be made to face the full rigours of the law.

She also indicated that to deepen the bilateral relationship between the two countries, President Nana Akufo-Addo, would be visiting China this year to attend an Import Fair to help improve trade between two countries.

She advised visa applications to make personal enquires at the visa section of the Embassy or visit the website of the Embassy for more details on visa application.

By Thomas Fosu Jnr