If You See My Son Jojo on Any Galamsey Site Shoot him- Prof Frimpong Boateng

Galamsey: Prof Kwabena Frimpong Boateng speaks on what happened during his time

I said, if you see my son Joho on any Galamey site, shoot him, says Professor Frimpong Boateng. Paul Adom Okyere asked Prof Frimpong, after your interview with Bernard Avle on Citi TV last week, I stood in front of the touchscreen and made a comment. I said that people were accusing Professor Kwabena Frimpong-Boateng of remaining silent while allegations were being made that his son, Jojo, was involved in illegal mining (galamsey), yet he was speaking strongly about others.

Let me be very clear: Jojo has done nothing wrong. He is not a politician. He is simply someone’s son, and dragging him into political attacks is unfair. For that reason alone, an apology is owed to Jojo.

Someone even asked whether Jojo was a “minor.” No—he is not a minor in age. He is a mining engineer by profession.

At some point, I made a very strong statement out of anger. I said that if Jojo was ever found at any galamsey site, shoot him and kill. But Ghana is not a lawless country; we do not kill people. That statement was meant to show how strongly I opposed illegal mining—not to suggest lawlessness.

Let me explain Jojo’s background clearly.

After university, Jojo did his national service at Anguaguade in the Ashanti Region. After completing his service, I discussed with him two possible projects. One of them was reclaiming degraded mining land by planting Jatropha (jet fuel plant)—a small tree whose seeds can be processed into oil for biofuel and bioglycerol. At the time, I myself was working on bioglycerol research, and Jojo was directly involved in that work.

However, that project did not proceed because Jojo feared that after rehabilitating the land, illegal small-scale miners might return and destroy it again.

Later, Jojo observed that most large-scale mining operations in Ghana were owned by foreign companies. He expressed interest in entering legal, large-scale mining as a Ghanaian. I told him, “Go ahead—do it properly.”

In 2010, during the John Evans Atta Mills administration, Jojo legally applied for mining concessions. He was granted five concessions, officially approved by the Minister for Lands and Natural Resources and processed through the Land Commission and Minerals Commission. These are all documented facts.

After reviewing the concessions, Jojo told me the area was too large to develop responsibly within the required time. On my advice, he returned three concessions to the state and retained only two. This was done legally and transparently.

He then partnered with colleagues from Canada, the United States, and British Guiana and began the reconnaissance stage of mining—this involved geological surveys, drilling samples, and laboratory analysis, not excavators or destructive mining. Samples were analyzed at ALS Laboratory Services (ELS Lab) in Ghana, and reports were submitted to the Minerals Commission.

He worked with a qualified geologist, now deceased, who oversaw the technical aspects.

Unfortunately, conflicts later arose between local groups over the land where the remaining concessions were located. Because of these disputes, operations were suspended, and to this day, no mining has taken place on that land.

Yes—Jojo paid fully for the concessions and all required processes. There is documentation to prove this. He did not obtain wealth illegally, nor did he exploit his father’s position.

When I became Minister in 2017, Jojo was not operating any mining activity. Claims that he benefited from my position or that people were “buying drinks” for him because he was my son are completely false.

Since then, Jojo has moved on. He is a businessman, married, with two children, and no longer involved in mining activities.

Let me state this clearly for the record:

Since around 2012, Jojo has not engaged in mining—legal or illegal.

He has never done galamsey.

I personally instructed him to be exemplary in all his actions, knowing very well that people would scrutinize him because of who his father is.

Many of these accusations were politically motivated. I denied them repeatedly, but some people refused to listen. Even when concerns were raised within the New Patriotic Party, the false narratives continued to circulate.

That is the truth. The records exist. The facts are clear.