GALAMSEY OPERATORS UNDERMINE INSURANCE BUILDING (PAGE 21)

THE foundation of the newly constructed offices of the Juaboso Mutual Health Insurance Scheme in the Juaboso District in the Western Region is being destroyed by illegal gold mining operators, popularly known as “galamsey”.
The illegal gold diggers have dug trenches measuring between 120 and 300 feet near the building, as well as many horizontal tunnels, thereby threatening the very foundation of the building, which is fully equipped and operating efficiently.
An inspection tour of the area by the Daily Graphic revealed that more than 10 of such deep trenches had been dug near the offices of the scheme.
It was also established that about 1,000 illegal gold miners were operating in the area near the building, with more than 40 of the miners working in one trench at a time.
“Today is a break day otherwise you would have met about 1,000 workers here,” one of the illegal operators, who gave his name as Kwadwo Mensah, remarked, adding, “As we are speaking now, there are many miners underground, who would come out at the appropriate time”.
According to Mensah, the area was an old colonial mining concession and that the indigenes of Juaboso were aware that there was a gold-bearing rock in the area, adding, “This is a mining area and l spend GH¢6,000 on the construction of one trench”.
The Manager of the Juaboso District Mutual Health Insurance Scheme, Mr John Koah, said the management of the scheme had written to the Juaboso District Assembly about the illegal gold mining activities in the area and had given the illegal operators an ultimatum to leave the premises of the scheme, but they had not complied.
Meanwhile, as of August 31, 2008, the scheme had registered 87,942 clients, representing 54.4 per cent of the total population of the district.
The scheme also registered a total of 1,541 pregnant women between July and August, this year, and had paid a total amount of GH¢1,497,643.10 as claims between 2006 and August, 2008.
The scheme has also paid the highest individual medical bill of GH¢1,690 to a client who received medical care at the Okomfo Anokye Teaching Hospital in Kumasi.