Over 100 excavators have been discreetly moved from Ghana’s Tema Port to Burma Camp, a high-security military facility in Accra — a move that has triggered widespread concern and speculation from civil society groups and members of the public.
The covert nature of the operation, reportedly carried out under the cover of night, has fueled suspicions of illegal importation or a lack of regulatory oversight regarding the arrival and distribution of the heavy machinery.
However, government officials have moved to dispel these claims.
The Minister of Transport has categorically denied allegations of illicit importation, stating that the excavators were not newly imported but are instead existing equipment being relocated as part of a port decongestion exercise.
President John Mahama also addressed the issue during a media engagement on Wednesday, September 10.
He dismissed reports suggesting that the excavators were being secretly released to their owners at midnight.
“In the meantime, a lot of excavators have arrived at the port, and recently, somebody said they were being released at midnight to their owners.
That’s not true,” he said.
According to the President, the relocation is part of a strategy to manage congestion at Tema Port.
The sheer volume of excavators had overwhelmed the port’s storage capacity, prompting authorities to temporarily move them to a secure site near a military installation.
“They do that in the night because of traffic in the daytime.
So, at night, pay-loaders move the excavators out of the port to designated areas where they are supposed to be held,” he explained.
President Mahama emphasized that the government is strictly enforcing laws that require importers to obtain permits before bringing excavators into the country.
He also stressed that no excavator leaves the designated holding facility without meeting rigorous conditions — including registration, installation of GPS tracking devices, and verification of ownership and intended use.
“We want to know who is importing the excavators, where they’re going, and we want to be able to track them anywhere in the country,” he said.
He further noted that while the government remains committed to combating illegal mining (galamsey), a complete ban on excavator imports is not feasible, as these machines are essential for legitimate large-scale mining operations and construction projects.
Despite these assurances, critics argue that the government’s handling of the issue lacks transparency.
They say the decision to store the excavators at a military facility only deepens public skepticism and calls into question the government’s commitment to open governance.
Civil society organizations and concerned citizens are now demanding full disclosure on the ownership, origin, and intended use of the excavators.
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