Dear Editor,
I would like to extend my heartiest congratulations to the newly appointed Minister of Natural Resources, Mr. Vickram Bharrat on the assumption of office. As a small miner I welcome and admire his hands-on approach to managing the sectors under his Ministry. His recent tour of the various agencies under his control is indeed the first step to bring the sectors back on track to produce and earn much needed finance for our country, which has been depleted over the past five years.
The task of Mr. Bharrat is a huge responsibility, but I see he has the willingness, youth and passion to drive his Ministry to optimum production. This will also have to be done by all miners and the various associations within the sectors such as the Gold and Diamond Miners Association, GGDMA. I on behalf of other small miners would like to pledge our support to bring this sector back into full operation along the path which will be outlined by the innovation and guidance of the competent Minister and his team. I do hope we as small miners will have an opportunity to share our views and thoughts with the Minister in the coming weeks to contribute towards the transformation of the mining sector.
Most importantly, a lot of support will be needed from the regulatory agency for mining under the Ministry to manage the current gold rush as prices has been fluctuating between US$1900 – US$2000. This has resulted in a rush for new mining lands and in some cases illegal mining which may harm our sector in the long run.
It is in this regard that while we welcome and congratulate the Minister of Natural Resources on his recent appointment, we the small miners call on his good office to pay keen attention to the price of gold and the possible illegal mining which could result from a gold rush.
We, the small miners welcome the minister to the sector and will be looking forward to sharing our views and engaging in discussions to transform the sector.
Yours faithfully,
C. De Barros
