A truck loaded with rosewood has been intercepted by the Kassena-Nankana Municipal Forestry Commission. The 2 footer container vehicle with registration number AS 3938 U according to Navrongo forestry commission was intercepted for more than a week now.
The driver’s mate of the truck who only gave his name as Ahmed said the driver after the interception left to bring the documents covering their deal to enable them proceed to Tema where they conveying the woods to but has since not returned.
But sources at Navrongo forestry division revealed the truck was intercepted because owners of woods did not have certified documents covering their deal.
According to the division, the truck belongs to one of the 25 companies which have been given permit to salvage abandoned rosewood in forest reserves in the Upper East, Upper West, Northern and Brong-Ahafo regions.
A letter dated 2nd August, 2017 and signed by Kwadwo Owusu Afriyie, Chief Executive Officer of Forestry Commission and sighted by a1radioonline.com directing forestry officials in the 4 regions to accord the 25 companies in their operations.
Early this year, Organization for Indigenous Initiatives and Sustainability (ORGIIS) a Non-Governmental Organization against the mismanagement of the environment facilitated and led to the arrest of five illegal loggers who intruded Kayoro and Nakong forests in the Kassena-Nankana West district of Upper East region.
In an interview with Project Coordinator of ORGIIS, Julius Awaregya, he said the region’s forests have no lying logs or rosewoods which ought to be salvaged.
“As we sit in this region there is no community we have lying logs so what did they [forestry officials] asked them [companies] to come and collect” It means that they [companies] are now coming to completely finish the whole of our lands with all the tree pieces that are there”
Mr. Awaregya said actions of officials of forestry commission hamper the fight against depletion of forests.
By: Joshua Asaah|A1radioonline.com|Ghana
