The Media Coalition Against Galamsey has expressed frustration over what it perceives as the government’s reluctance to effectively combat illegal mining, commonly known as galamsey.
In an interview on the Citi Breakfast Show on Citi FM on Friday, October 4, the convener of the coalition, Ing. Kenneth Ashigbey, condemned the government’s silence on the ongoing destruction of water bodies and forest reserves due to galamsey.
He likened the scale of devastation caused by illegal mining to the operations of terrorists, calling for more urgent and decisive action.
Speaking with host Caleb Kudah, Ashigbey urged Organised Labour to disregard President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo’s appeal to postpone the planned October 10 protest against galamsey.
He argued that there is no time to delay, given the severe environmental damage and long-lasting impact of illegal mining activities.
“If it was terrorists who were attacking us, would the government be telling us to hold on? As a social scientist, let me profess my hypothesis. The reason they are asking us to wait is not because of political power but because people are benefiting from this and so they want us to give them more time so that they can continue to rape us.
“We cannot continue to wait because this is an ecocide so there cannot be a call to wait. As the president did with the COVID-19 pandemic, there must be periodic updates as to the measures taken to resolve this menace and that is what we want to hear.”
President Akufo-Addo appealed to Organised Labour to reconsider its planned strike scheduled for October 10, emphasising his commitment to addressing their concerns regarding illegal mining, which is wreaking havoc on Ghana’s environment.
The president appealed during a closed-door meeting on Thursday, October 3, with Organised Labour’s leaders, where the urgent need for decisive action against illegal mining was a central topic of discussion.
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