The Member of Parliament for Effutu Alexander Afenyo-Markin has denied claims that the forest in Effutu where the people haunt for dears during the Aboakyir Festival, has been sold to mine Lithium.
He said this claim is not true and should be disregarded.
The Deputy Majority Leader accused the National Democratic Congress (NDC) in his constituency of peddling falsehood to the effect that the first had been sold.
Addressing the press in Parliament on Tuesday, December 5, he said “The NDC in my constituency has come out with a serious allegation to the effect that government officials including my office sat unconcerned and got the sacred forest of where we go for dear haunting that the place has been sold for the mining of Lithium.
“I simply want to state that this allegation is false, it is never true and in fact, the Minerals Commission, two years ago issued a statement to the effect that such an application has not even been received by them let alone approved for a company to mine lithium in that sacred forest where we haunt for dear during the Aboakyir Festival.
“I just want to set the record straight that there is no such thing. I will therefore want to urge my colleagues in the NDC to focus on the real changes facing our people so that we engage in an issue rather than polluting the minds of people, misinforming, and lying. such a practice does not help in democracy.”
Earlier, the Minerals Commission also responded to concerns raised by traditional authorities in Effutu that a company had been granted the mineral right to mine in the forest.
The Commission said it had not granted any permit for mining in the forest.