The town hall of Poum organized a public meeting on Monday to discuss the mining activity, after the placement of Sonarep in compulsory liquidation. In the town, concern hovers.
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More than 90 people responded to the invitation of the town hall, this Monday afternoon, in Poum, in order to discuss the future of the mine in the commune. After two hours of discussions, uncertainty remains.
“The answers that we expected a lot from this meeting, it was just the future of the Poum mine. Frankly, we had nothing concrete”reacts Steven Stuart, subcontractor for the Yadamalep company. “We hope in the next few days that it will be unblocked, so that we can know our future, because being a child of the commune, apart from the mine, we have nothing else.”
Nickel employee Jim Beudot also expresses his dismay: “I need answers about my future as an SLN employee. Today, I’m totally confused. I don’t know where I’m going. I don’t know if I’m going to be transferred to another centre. I don’t know if I’m going to be fired.”
Prior to this meeting, a mining commission was held to take stock of the situation. Remember that the Company Poum’s navigation and haulage company, Sonarep, is placed in compulsory liquidation. But also describe the current mining activity. Several weeks ago, SLN ceased operations. She is waiting for new permits. To date, fifty employees out of the 98 on the site are on partial unemployment.
For its part, the town hall took a deliberation to modify a perimeter of water protection in order to guarantee a continuation of exploitation. Information sent to the public this afternoon. “At the level of the municipality, we took the elements that were constraints, we did what was necessary on a water issue!insists the mayor, Henriette Tidjine-Hmae. Everyone knows that the commune of Poum has a lot of water problems. This morning’s mining commission revealed to us that there were still other constraints, which are not within the mining competence of the municipality, and which should be lifted. The inhabitants themselves recalled during this information meeting their desire to see mining activity continue on Poum.
