Source: Myjoyonline
A Tax for Galamsey is a Hotline investigative documentary that exposes how illegal mining in Amansie Central District of the Ashanti Region is no longer merely tolerated – but systematically taxed, receipted and protected by government appointees.
Through undercover reporting, secret recordings, documentary evidence and on-the-ground infiltration, the investigation reveals an alleged extortion network involving the District Assembly, a taskforce operating under the authority of the District Chief Executive.
The documentary uncovers how illegal miners are compelled to pay fixed “registration” fees – ₵3,000 per changfan machine and tens of thousands of cedis per excavator – in exchange for uninterrupted operations. Payments are formalized with stickers, receipts and bank deposits into official Assembly accounts, transforming environmental crime into a structured revenue stream.
At the centre of the investigation is recorded evidence in which the District Chief Executive confirms authorizing the collection of these payments. Undercover footage shows Assembly staff facilitating transactions, taskforce leaders enforcing compliance, and NADMO officials demanding separate fees to avert enforcement actions.
By following the money – from mining pits to Assembly offices, private residences and rural banks – the documentary demonstrates that illegal mining in Amansie Central is administered like a parallel taxation system, operating under the cover of public authority.
Beyond environmental devastation, A Tax for Galamsey raises urgent legal and governance questions, pointing to potential breaches of Ghana’s mining, financial management, criminal, environmental and local governance laws.
This investigation lays bare a disturbing reality: the fight against galamsey is being undermined from within the state itself – where those mandated to protect land, water, and communities are allegedly complicit in their destruction.
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