BY JOHN HOUANIHAU

The situation the country is now facing in terms of illegal mining is almost like a gold rush.

New Minister of Mines and Rural Electrification, Derick Manu’ari, said this when he responded to Opposition Leader Mathew Wale, MP for Small Malaita, Rick Hou and MP for West Are’are John Maneniaru on the floor of Parliament Thursday this week.

He was responding to questions raised regarding illegal alluvial mining operations in the upper Balasuna River in Guadalcanal province, which is now under police investigation.

“You know our situation now is almost like a gold rush. People come in to try to apply for a licence. Not only alluvial mining, but also, other forms of mining. And like alluvial itself, at the moment, the total number of current alluvial mining permits is 17. The locals who are currently engaged in mining.”

“We can only effectively manage a certain number of operators. So, we do interviews for vacant positions in the ministry,” said Manu’ari.

He told the three opposition MPs that with the Ministry’s reforms, more transparency and accountability processes are anticipated.

“To ensure that we engage with genuine investors. Not only on a small scale, but also in terms of prospecting and mining operations,” he said.

He also assured the leaders that he has noted their comments to strengthen the ministry’s roles and responsibilities to ensure similar mistakes are not repeated in the future.

“It’s a point that has been duly noted and that’s the objective of the ministry. To ensure that there are transparent and accountable processes to deal with genuine investors to be able to maximise the benefits we have from utilising our non-renewable resources,” said Manu’ari.

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