The President of the Ghana Catholic Bishops’ Conference, Most Rev. Matthew Kwasi Gyamfi, has urged Ghanaians to vote against the current government in the 2028 elections, accusing it of encouraging illegal mining rather than taking decisive steps to end the menace.
Speaking on Adom FM’s Burning Issues, Most Rev. Gyamfi said the government had demonstrated a lack of commitment to fighting illegal mining, popularly known as galamsey, because, in his view, some of its members were involved in the activity.
He said Ghanaians should not continue to rely on the current administration to resolve the problem but must take responsibility for demanding a change in leadership.
According to him, voters must elect leaders who are prepared to honour their promises and introduce practical alternatives to address illegal mining.
He also urged Ghanaians to demand clear and workable plans from anyone seeking to lead the country, insisting that the electorate must hold the current government accountable at the ballot box, just as the previous administration was.
Meanwhile, the Public Relations Officer of the Small Scale Miners Association, Razak Alhassan, has questioned the government’s approach to tackling illegal mining.
He argued that members of the association who operate within the rules would have no reason to engage in confrontations with the National Anti-Illegal Mining Operations Secretariat (NAIMOS).
“None of our members would engage in a gun battle with NAIMOS because we follow the rules and have no issues with the task force,” he said.
Mr Alhassan also questioned the need for NAIMOS to take the lead in removing illegal miners from forest reserves, arguing that Forestry Commission officers are already deployed to protect those areas.
“Most of the forest reserves have Forestry Commission officers guarding them. It should not even take NAIMOS to drive illegal miners out of the forests,” he said.
He further maintained that the activities currently being undertaken by NAIMOS were not entirely new, suggesting that existing institutions already had responsibilities in the fight against illegal mining.
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