The death of seven persons in the clash between suspected illegal miners at Obuasi and state security officers stationed at AngloGold Ashanti has led to criticisms being directed at the host of Onua TV’s morning show, Captain Smart.
His critics are referencing an old video from the morning show where the host went on a rant against AngloGold Ashanti (AGA) over what he described as the company’s denial of indigenes’ rights with the support of the military.
“I am telling the youth of Ghana in Obuasi to enter the hole (AGA site). When you get up, storm there. Everyone should go and look for what to eat when you are hungry. You must be mad. Storm the place. Listen, AGA, if you don’t take care, we will chase you out of this country, I swear.
“Because listen, you cannot dig a cyanide hole of about a hundred meters in South Africa. Can you dig three cyanide square holes measuring a hundred meters each in South Africa and get away with it? But for the daft leadership we have in this country, why won’t these things happen? That is what I want Nana Addo and the Minister for Lands and Natural Resources to understand: that AGA is destroying Obuasi, and the youth of Obuasi should rise,” he stated during a rant on his editorial captioned “Mining Effect: Military Terrorism, Maiming Farmers in Farmlands at Obuasi.”
Some social media users say the show host’s rant was one of the motivating factors in the clash on Saturday. The clash followed a longstanding impasse between the illegal miners and AGA.
On January 18, 2025, some illegal miners entered the concession of AGA in Obuasi, where a confrontation ensued between the illegal miners and some soldiers stationed at the mines.
According to a release signed by the Director General of Public Relations for the Ghana Armed Forces, Brigadier General E. Aggrey-Quashie, on Saturday, January 18, 2025, at about 2300 hours (11:00 PM), illegal miners numbering about 60 breached the AngloGold Ashanti mines security fence and intruded at Cote D’or Ramp.
He noted that the illegal miners aimed to enter the Deep Decline of the mines, hence retaliation by officers on the ground resulted in shooting since the illegal miners were wielding various weapons.
“The military patrol deployed on Operation HALT II duties at the mentioned location were fired upon by the illegal miners when the soldiers tried to stop them from accessing the Deep Decline.
“The illegal miners were wielding locally manufactured rifles, pump-action guns, gas cylinders, knives, heavy-duty industrial bolt cutters, axes, and machetes,” he added.
However, the shootout became fatal as the soldiers resorted to self-defence.
The shootout led to the death of seven illegal miners, with one seriously injured. Meanwhile, the president has ordered an immediate investigation into the incident.
In a letter signed by the president’s spokesperson, Felix Ofosu-Kwakye, he said, “The government wishes to express deep regret over the tragic loss of up to eight (8) lives, said to be illegal miners, following a violent clash at a mining site in Obuasi.”
See some social media reactions to Captain Smart’s old video below:
