Environmental Non-governmental organisation, A Rocha Ghana, has expressed disappointment in the President’s latest remarks regarding the fight against illegal mining, locally known as ‘galamsey’.
In his last State of the Nation address on Tuesday, President Nana Akufo-Addo called for a wider stakeholder dialogue on the menace.
He said the phenomenon of illegal mining has dire effects on the country’s environment and water bodies but there is the need for non-partisan discussions on whether it should be permitted in the country.
But A Rocha Ghana is of the view that the country has gone beyond dialogue about whether to eliminate illegal mining.
Daryl Bosu, Deputy National Director for A Rocha Ghana in a Citi News interview explained that he expected more from the President.
“It is very sad to hear that after several budgetary allocations for four years since 2017, now the President comes again to say that we have an open discussion. So what happened to the Operation Vanguard and the work of the inter-ministerial committee on illegal mining? So what is he trying to tell us? His whole posture now is for me quite contradictory to what he made me understand that this not good for our country, and he was committed to stopping it at all cost even at the cost of his presidency. I feel this turnaround is quite unfortunate and the President needs to do a lot of clarification on this matter”, he decried.
Small-scale miners welcome Akufo-Addo’s call for dialogue on galamsey
Meanwhile, the Concerned Small Scale Miners Association has welcomed President Akufo Addo’s call for an open stakeholder discussion on illegal small-scale mining popularly known as galamsey.
The Association says the move is a step in the right direction since all attempts to use security forces to clamp down on the activity has failed to yield the desired results.
The President of the Concerned Small Scale Miners Association, Michael Kojo Peprah in a Citi News interview said President Akufo-Addo’s call vindicates the association on their earlier stance that the deployment of military personnel to clamp down on the illegal activity will not yield any result.
He said the government must bring together all stakeholders and receive their inputs on how best to tackle the phenomenon.
“They should understand that, in the beginning, we told them that all these things about bringing the military will not help. In 1989, they brought the military it failed, 2000, 2012 it all failed. So when do we always do the same things and expect a different result? What they have come to realize is that what we were saying is true. They should extend their hand, and we will all come and all the expertise and solutions we have, we will put it on paper and help mother Ghana, so the country will benefit from mining,” he said.
The post Nana Addo’s request for open conversation on galamsey disappointing – A Rocha appeared first on Citinewsroom - Comprehensive News in Ghana.
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