Police in the Ashanti Region are investigating the shooting of two persons at Mfante in the Ahafo Ano North Municipality of the Ashanti region.
The two were reportedly shot dead in a clash between forestry officers and miners at a community mining site.
The government, through the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources, launched the community mining scheme at Mfante in 2021, which was projected to create jobs for the youth in the area.
Forestry officers claimed that the said area is within the forestry zone and that the miners do not have legal documents supporting their assertion that the place has been earmarked for community mining.
Therefore, there are claims of misunderstandings between forestry officers and the miners over the area earmarked for mining.
It is on the back of this that, after forestry officers stormed the site on Friday, November 10, a clash ensued which led to the fatalities.
Two persons also sustained injuries from the disturbances.
The Assembly member of the Mfante electoral area, Abu Issah, who confirmed the incident to Citi News, said the residents are living in fear following the incident and as such, many of them have started fleeing the area.
He is thus calling on the government to bring finality to the issue by providing the necessary documentation on the community mining scheme in the area.