The Attorney-General and Ministry of Justice, has advised that victims of the Peabo explosion and fire outbreak may take civil action against AKY Mining Services Limited, for damages for loss of lives, injuries sustained and destruction of properties.
The Minister for the Interior, Hon. Ambrose Dery, revealed this on the floor of Parliament, when he was responding to a question asked by the Member of Parliament for Nsawam-Adoagyiri, Hon. Frank Annoh-Dompreh. The MP asked him what plans were underway to ensure the payment of deserving compensation to the victims of the Peabo explosion, and the implementation of recommendations in the report on the incident.
The Minister informed the House that the Ministry, in the aftermath of the explosion, constituted a team of experts to identify the causes, and submit recommendations to prevent the recurrence of such accidents in the country.
He said the team submitted its report to the Ministry in April, 2016, and a copy was forwarded to the Attorney-General’s Department (A-G) for review and advice.
He indicated that a critical recommendation by the team was for the affected victims to be compensated. He added that a meeting was held with Mr. Adam Kofi Yemoah, the Managing Director of AKY Mining Services Ltd., to discuss the matter.
The Minister said Mr. Yemoah explained that he would work towards compensating the victims if he was permitted to work to generate some income.
He intimated that despite the aforementioned plea, the company has in the last three weeks submitted a cheque for GH¢100,000 to the Ministry to be disbursed to the victims of the accident on humanitarian grounds. He added that the Ministry finds the said amount inadequate and is in negotiation with the company.
The Minister also stated that the A-G has requested that a copy of the report be forwarded to the Ghana Police Service to conduct investigations, take statements from the victims and witnesses, and build a docket for prosecution.
It would be recalled that on the 23rd of December, 2016, there was an explosion and fire outbreak at the magazine of M/S AKY Mining Services Ltd. at Peabo in the Nsawam-Adoagyiri Municipality, which affected residents in the community.
