Social commentator Sidney Casely-Hayford has described the government’s reported plans to use drones to fight illegal small mining after restructuring Operation Vanguard as a waste of time.
Speaking on The Big Issue, Mr. Casely-Hayford said he thought it was “a brain-dead solution” and that such a plan “will die before it is even born.”
“This a waste of time. It is not the answer to the problem,” he added.
These reported plans accompanied reports that the government will from March 2020 withdraw the military component of its anti-illegal mining taskforce, Operation Vanguard, from the field.
To continue effective monitoring of the sector, Citi News sources said the government was going to rely on mining guards and 144 drone pilots who are under the Nation Builders Corps.
But Mr. Casely-Hayford remarked that such plans have not been thought through.
“I think that we have not sat down to critically decide how we want to resolve this problem [of illegal mining],” he said.
He reiterated that whatever plan the government came up with must focus “on guaranteeing the cleanliness of the water bodies.”
“As to how somebody the ground and gets it, give them the regulations. If you dig and don’t find any gold or dig up as much gold as you want, leave the place in the condition you found it.”
Source: citinewsroom.com
