The Concerned Farmers Association, Terchire has challenged Newmont to provide evidence that that it has agreed to pay compensations to landowners whose lands were impacted by its recent exploratory activities at its Ahafo North Project mining area.
Newmont in a media release on September 13, 2023, responding to the arrest of some members of the Concerned Farmers stated that though the company’s exploration team ‘inadvertently impacted’ a land belonging to a member of the association, that matter was amicably resolved with the owners of the land.
But at a press conference in Terchire in the Tano North District, Ahafo Region on Tuesday, September 26, 2023 Bismark Oduro Mensah, who read the statement on behalf of the group, said in spite of the fact that Newmont was aware that these farms were the source of livelihood of these farmers, the company still went ahead to destroy their farms.
“These farms are the main source of income for these farmers, families and dependents and the loss of these lands has left them impoverished. On occasions we exercised our constitutional right to protect our farms from the destruction, the Company in concert with the Tano North District Police arrest and detain our members,” he said.
The press conference was called by the Concerned Farmers Association to respond to Newmont’s media release, which according to the farmers was laden with untruths.
The spokesperson debunked the statement by Newmont in its release that members of the association were “uncooperative” and that they had rejected the outcome of the negotiations and subsequently declined enumeration of their farms and structures, despite extensive engagement and mediation efforts.
“Although the Government published its intention to acquire land compulsorily in the affected communities in June 2023, there hasn’t been any assessment or enumeration of crops/properties by the Lands Commission and the affected farmers to arrive at compensation amounts for the affected farmers,” he stressed.
According to Mr Oduro Mensah, the destruction of these lands will leave the farmers with no basis to demand for compensations, hence Newmont’s deliberate disregard for the laws of the land concerning land acquisition processes.
He said members of the association were law-abiding and responsible people who have made huge investment on their farms over the years.
“…as such, we will always employ all lawful and legitimate means to protect our investment from any wanton destruction, while demanding respect for our rights and under the laws of Ghana notwithstanding the intimidation, harassment and bullying from Newmont and its agents,” he affirmed.
Again, Mr Oduro Mensah said Newmont has resorted to peddling lies on the pending court orders. While refraining from commenting on the matter which was before the Circuit Court, Duayaw Nkwanta, he said the company disrespected the court by issuing a false statement to the effect that the court directed the accused persons not to go to the mining area until the final determination of the trial.
“We have a certified true copy of the court proceedings from that day in our possession, and there was no such order from the Court. The Court’s directives dealt with admitting the accused to bail. The court did not make a determination on whether or not the land in issue is a mining area. Newmont’s claim that the Court ordered the accused to refrain from going to their farms or mining area/concession is false, and an afterthought by the company to justify the arrest and detention of four other members of the Association on September 6, 2023,” he told the press.
He said this blatant untruth and ‘prejudicial statement’ by Newmont shows the mining company’s disdain for not just the court’s orders, but also for the judiciary, Ghana’s state institutions and the laws of the country.
Continuing, Mr Oduro Mensah said the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources (MLNR) wrote to Newmont to undertake a Land Parcel Survey to identify the respective boundaries of land owners and lawful occupiers of land whose lands will be adversely impacted by the Ahafo North project.
“This decision was reached because the Concerned Farmers Association have about 84 members who own or occupy lands within the Tano North District,” he clarified.
He said the identification of the lands that would be impacted by Newmont’s activities would serve as basis for further engagement with the affected farmers.
“Instead of abiding by this decision, the company rather communicated to the members of the affected group that they would rather conduct a full built assets survey i.e. comprising enumeration of all farm properties and structures on one’s land. This was vehemently refused by members of the Association as it wasn’t the decision reached with the Minister’s representatives,” stated Mr Oduro Mensah.
However, he said members of the association vehemently rejected the full-built assets survey by Newmont.
“Till date the company hasn’t conducted this land parcel survey to identify and inform which of our member’s land will be impacted by their mining activities but they have rather resorted to the practice of entering onto our members’ lands and destroying their farm properties without their consent,” he lamented.
Interestingly, Mr Oduro Mensah indicated that to date the four persons of the association who were arrested on September 6, 2023, and detained for two days by the Duayaw Nkwanta District Police, have no inkling of their offence(s).
“Upon being granted police enquiry bail on 8th September, 2023, Mr John Mensah’s approximately sixteen (16)–acre teak farm which he sought to protect from destruction had been cleared by the mining company. Clearly the company used his arrest and detention period as an appropriate means to destroy his teak farm,” he noted.
He made it clear that none of the arrested persons including John Mensah whose farm properties were destroyed by Newmont consented to giving his or her land/crops out or negotiated any amount as compensation for Newmont to take over their lands.
Mr Mensah recounted that somewhere in June 2023, the government declared its intention to compulsorily acquire some lands in the Tano North District for mining and other related uses.
“While government has started a process towards compulsorily acquiring some of the lands belonging to some members of the Concerned Farmers Association, no such lands as we write have been compulsorily acquired yet for the mining operations of Newmont in accordance with law.
…However, workers and agents of Newmont have entered onto lands belonging to some members of the Concerned Farmers Association and destroyed their farm properties. Although the Government published its intention to acquire land compulsorily in the affected communities in June 2023, there hasn’t been any assessment or enumeration of crops/properties by the Lands Commission and the affected farmers to arrive at compensation amounts for the affected farmers,” he underscored.
