The National Anti-Illegal Mining Operations Secretariat has called for increased logistical and financial support to strengthen its operations against illegal mining.

The appeal was made by the Director of Operations, Dominic Buah, during the NAIMOS Editors’ Forum and Quarterly Press Briefing on Wednesday, March 25.

According to Col. Buah, the effectiveness of NAIMOS’s operations is being constrained by limited resources, particularly a shortage of essential operational vehicles.

Nonetheless, he commended the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources for its commitment to the mission in the last ten months.

“We need vehicles, we need money, we need all the resources,” he stated.

He urged corporate organisations and non-governmental organisations to support the Secretariat, assuring that such contributions would be publicly acknowledged.

“Corporate bodies who want to support, why not? We will acknowledge you and then make it known to the whole nation,” he added.

Col. Buah also issued a strong warning to illegal miners, cautioning them against engaging in violent confrontations with members of NAIMOS’s anti-galamsey task force.

Operations spearheaded by NAIMOS have increasingly encountered resistance in some mining communities, raising concerns about the safety of personnel deployed to enforce the law.

Addressing the issue, he made it clear that the task force would not tolerate any form of armed resistance, stressing that operatives are well-trained and prepared to defend themselves if provoked.

“We will not stand and watch anyone use weapons against us. We are better trained in weapons and therefore warn that anybody who dares, NAIMOS will deal with them ruthlessly,” he said.

“It is a problem we are trying to address, and we have the right to self-defence, and let no galamseyer miss that. If you go to the field with weapons and you try to fire them, a lot more will be at you,” he added.