Founder and Leader of the United Front Party (UFP), Nana Agyenim Boateng, popularly known as Gyataba, has condemned the recent clash between some youth and military personnel at the AngloGold Ashanti mining site in Obuasi.

Speaking in an interview on Oyerepa TV on January 22, 2025, he criticized the behaviour of the youth involved, describing their actions as “resembling terrorists prepared to face the military.”

“The actions of the youth in Obuasi were extraordinary and reckless. They behaved like terrorists, ready to confront armed military personnel without fear. This kind of approach only escalates tensions and invites the unfortunate outcomes we are now grappling with.”

He called for community leaders to take a more active role in guiding the youth toward peaceful and constructive ways of addressing grievances.

On January 18, 2025, some illegal miners entered the concession of AGA in Obuasi, where a confrontation ensued between the illegal miners and some soldiers stationed at the mines.

According to a release signed by the Director General of Public Relations for the Ghana Armed Forces, Brigadier General E. Aggrey-Quashie, on Saturday, January 18, 2025, at about 2300 hours (11:00 PM), illegal miners numbering about 60 breached the AngloGold Ashanti mines security fence and intruded at Cote D’or Ramp.

He noted that the illegal miners aimed to enter the Deep Decline of the mines, and as a result, officers on the ground reacted, leading to shootings since the illegal miners were wielding various weapons.

"The military patrol deployed on Operation HALT II duties at the mentioned location were fired upon by the illegal miners when the soldiers tried to stop them from accessing the Deep Decline.

"The illegal miners were wielding locally manufactured rifles, pump-action guns, gas cylinders, knives, heavy-duty industrial bolt cutters, axes, and machetes," he added.

However, the shootout became fatal as the soldiers resorted to self-defence.

The shootout led to the death of seven illegal miners, with one seriously injured. Meanwhile, the president has ordered an immediate investigation into the incident.

In a letter signed by the president's spokesperson, Felix Ofosu-Kwakye, he said, "The government wishes to express deep regret over the tragic loss of up to eight (8) lives, said to be illegal miners, following a violent clash at a mining site in Obuasi."