The ranking member of Parliament's Mines and Energy Committee has stated that he will not allow former Environment Minister Prof Frimpong Boateng's allegations of top officials engaging in illegal mining to be dismissed.

According to him, the Minority in Parliament will escalate and pursue the issue when Parliament resumes.

This, he stated is because the claims made by the chairman of the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Illegal Mining (IMCIM) set up by President Akufo-Addo are very serious.

He added that “we cannot allow this level of impunity, this level of gross disregard to our national laws to continue.”

“This is unfortunate and any attempt to sweep it under the carpet will not wash. This is a very serious matter, it tells you why we are failing as a country to build limit limits..,” he said in an interview on Joy FM's Top Story.

His comment comes after former Environment Minister, Prof Frimpong Boateng submitted names of people in government who frustrated his effort to fight what is locally called ‘galamsey’.

In the 2021 report to the President which has just been leaked, Prof Boateng names senior government officials accused of active involvement in illegal mining.

According to him, the ‘galamsey’ menace goes as high as the government seat, Jubilee House.

Mr Jinapor responded to the report's content by saying he was not surprised by the details.

He explained that he knows from information that the President's announcement to put his presidency on the line was not made in good faith.

He, however, expressed his dismay over the extent of rot and the level of complicity of the presidency.

According to him, the reports indicate that the “commitment to fight galamsey is not there, it is just mere talk, it is rhetoric and that this government is not showing the capacity, the desire, the willingness and the seriousness to tackle it.”

“For top government officials to get involved in this whole galamsey menace, what are you going to tell the ordinary Ghanaian?” he quizzed.