The National Disaster Management Organization (NADMO) in the Nsawam Adoagyiri Municipality of the Eastern Region has threatened to demolish all structures being put up by developers within buffer zones of quarry companies operating in the area.
Quarry companies operating in the Nsawam Municipality have lodged series of complaints to the Municipal Security Council about the invasion and the continuous encroachment of their buffer zones by both private and individual developers.
According to NADMO, the continuous encroachment and stay in the operational areas of these quarry companies do not only pose a threat to the lives of the encroachers but government as well, as the state would have to cough up huge sums of money to cater for medical expenses in the unlikely incident of a blast within the buffer zones of quarry companies.
The Municipal NADMO Boss, Amoafo Smart who spoke to Citi News about the worrying trend says the country is likely to import quarry materials for construction as all the companies are threatening to fold up and leave the country.
“The government gave the permit to the concession and as an assembly, we created the buffers. But if we don’t clamp down on these illegalities, we might import quarry stones and materials and that is not the best for the country. The Assembly has not given permits to those buildings so they are building illegally, so we want to enter the buffer zone and destroy all those structures.”
He however called on the Minister of Lands and Natural Resources to immediately intervene and come to the aid of the assembly in a planned demolition exercise to help save lives and properties of persons in the operational areas.
“We are appealing to the Minister. He said sometime back that he is going to chase these people. He should come to our aid and support us to save the business for the operators to survive. They have threatened to move their companies.”
