Africa-Press – Botswana. Illegal mining is so rampant in Matsiloje that auxiliary tunnel entries have been cut through people’s ploughing fields, prompting the government to commit to increasing police and military presence in the area.
The government is about to unleash a crackdown on illegal mining activities in Matsiloje by deploying increased police and military presence in the area.
The pledge was made by the Minister of State President, Moeti Mohwasa, responding to complaints from people of Matsiloje that illegal mining has reached uncontrollable levels at Old Rainbow gold mine.
Addressing a kgotla meeting in Matsiloje recently, Minister Mohwasa assured that the government will put an end to the mayhem.
The people of Matsiloje told the minister that the illegal miners are aggressive to a point and dig shafts in their ploughing fields for use as tunnel entries.
Helpless
“In the not so distant future, we will ensure that we put an end to the illegal mining that has troubled this area,” said the minister.
“We have to end this nightmare because people of Matsiloje cannot continue to live in fear in their own homes and farmlands. Kgosi Sekgoma Moipolai told me sad stories of people being helpless in their own homes as the illegal miners do as they please in their farms.
“This cannot be allowed because the government has an obligation to protect its citizens. It would be failure on our part if we did not halt this. It is a mission that we will not fail in.”
Watch in fear
Mohwasa encouraged the people to be proactive by reporting suspicious and unusual activities to law enforcement agencies for prompt responses.
Mohwasa was responding to concerns raised by Kgosi Sekgoma Moipolai who said Zimbabweans are tormenting the area to a point where people only watch in fear.
The Botswana Police Service (BPS) allayed growing fears among the people of Matsiloje by confirming that the Botswana Defence Force (BDF) and the Zimbabwe National Army (ZNA) have formed a joint mission to fight illegal mining in the area.
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