I don't have full control over galamsey hotspots due to police jurisdiction disputes - Juaben MCE

Eunice Ohenewaa Ansu, the Municipal Chief Executive (MCE) for Juaben in the Ashanti Region, raised concerns over conflicting police jurisdictions during a joint anti-galamsey operation by the Ashanti Regional National Security and the Juaben Municipal Security Council (MISEC). She stated that the Juaben Municipality is served by three different police commands-Konongo, Bekwai, and Ejisu-which all claim operational jurisdiction over illegal mining hotspots within the municipality. Ohenewaa Ansu appealed to the Ministry of the Interior and the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) to urgently address these challenges, explaining that "Whenever the Juaben Police Command embarks on an operation in these communities, officers from the other police commands who also claim jurisdiction sometimes confront them. Yet all these communities fall under the Juaben Municipality. I have raised this issue several times, but it remains unresolved."

The MCE stated that these overlapping responsibilities have created confusion among security agencies, making coordinated enforcement against illegal miners extremely difficult. Communities such as Pemanase, Akronwe, Achiase, and Akronwe-Wibiri, all located within the Juaben Municipality, frequently experience separate operations by officers from different police commands, often leading to misunderstandings and operational clashes.