A fresh wave of illegal mining activities has hit Asante Akyem Bompata Baadu in the Ashanti Region, leaving vast stretches of cocoa farms destroyed and local farmers devastated.

Residents say the miners, who began trooping into the area in recent weeks, are digging pits and diverting water bodies that serve as a lifeline for the community.

According to affected farmers, the illegal miners have taken over productive cocoa farms, uprooting trees and contaminating the soil and streams.

“We woke up one morning to find our cocoa farms turned into mining sites. The miners say they have ‘permits,’ but we don’t know from where,” according to a farmer.

Community leaders at Bompata Baadu have expressed outrage, calling on the Asante Akyem South Municipal Assembly and the security agencies to intervene before the situation worsens.

They warn that the destruction of farms threatens cocoa production in the area.

Residents are appealing to government to deploy security forces to flush out the illegal miners and restore the affected lands before the menace spreads further across the Asante Akyem enclave.