The Media Coalition against Galamsey has expressed concern about the representation of four alleged illegal miners by law firm of the former National Chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Freddie Blay.
The accused persons are being tried alongside galamsey kingpin, Aisha Huang, for engaging in activities of illegal mining.
However, critics have questioned the commitment of the government to the fight with the development of the legal representation of the accused miners.
Speaking to Citi News on the matter, the Convener for the Coalition, Dr. Ken Ashigbey, said though the situation presents risks, the role of the media is critical to ensure that the tenets of the law are upheld.
“Ordinarily, I think Mr. Blay and his law deserve to be paid, and the way they are paid is when they do these representations. But at this stage and crisis that we find ourselves in, I will urge especially because some of these things, one may have to weigh them and make the choice on which cases to take to ensure that the right thing is done.”
Already, Freddie Blay has said he finds nothing wrong with his law firm representing the accused persons.
Mr. Blay believes his firm has the responsibility of representing persons they believe are innocent of charges brought against them.
He said his political status should not come in the way of his legal work.
“It’s a wrong impression that some people have. The fact that my law firm is defending them does not mean that government supports and is involved in illegal mining. We all support efforts against galamsey. Personally, I am against galamsey.”
“This does not mean that innocent people should not be represented. Let’s wait for the court to decide. At the end of the day, we will know the truth, that my clients are innocent. They have done nothing wrong and are not involved in galamsey”, he added.
