The National Anti-Illegal Mining Operations Secretariat (NAIMOS) says the deaths recorded during Wednesday’s confrontation at Manso Keniago in the Ashanti Region resulted from an act of self-defence by its personnel.
NAIMOS Spokesperson, Paa Kwesi Schandorf, said the personnel acted in self-defence during the confrontation with residents and suspected illegal miners.
He disclosed this on JoyNews’ Upfront programme hosted by Blessed Sogah.
“That (the deaths) happened because they confronted the NAIMOS task force. A mob descended on the task force. The task force initially fired warning shots to disperse them and de-escalate the situation, but they were determined, insisting on the NAIMOS, and what compelled the NAIMOS, under the circumstances, to, in the interest of self-defence, deter them, and that is how, unfortunately, they lost their lives,” he explained.
Watch the his full comment below.
The incident occurred on Wednesday afternoon when some residents and suspected illegal miners reportedly attempted to prevent NAIMOS personnel from tracking excavators seized from the area.
Preliminary accounts indicate that the group blocked the road and pelted the personnel’s vehicles with stones, shattering the windscreens of some of them.
The confrontation initially left three people dead, but the death toll has since risen to six.
The incident has also triggered tension in the community, with angry youth reportedly besieging the palace of the paramount chief and attempting to attack the District Chief Executive (DCE), whom they accused of failing to contain the situation.
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