Tamale North Member of Parliament, Alhassan Suhuyini has said the Akufo-Addo administration is not committed to the fight against illegal small scale mining (Galamsey).
He said the government has only been engaged in rhetoric when it comes to fighting the menace.
Speaking on the Key Points on TV3 Saturday September 17, he explained that it was the Media Coalition against illegal small scale mining which is made up of some journalists, who took it upon themselves to highlight the dangers of galamsey and the need for it to stop.
It was only after this that the government started initiating some moves to deal with the situation.
‘The government was not really committed to the fight against galamsey,” Suhuyini stressed.
He added “They have only engaged in rhetoric and waste of money money.”
The Chamber of Agribusiness Ghana (CAG) has also expressed concerns over the low commitment and will power by the government of Ghana in the fight against galamsey.
Activities of illegal miners directly impact the agricultural sector through the destruction of farms and arable farmlands as well as water bodies. Several youths that were engaged in farming have abandoned farming for illegal mining which seems more lucrative in the interim. Farmhands have thus become scarce and expensive.
In an interview with 3FM Sunrise Morning Show on the impact of galamsey on the agricultural sector, Anthony Morrison, the Chief Executive of the Chamber of Agribusiness Ghana mentioned that government’s lack of commitment and mediocrity as well as the greed and pettiness on the part of authorities hinder efforts to overcome illegal mining.
“From the engagement we have had with the government as civil society groups within the agricultural sector, the press conference we had to share our concerns with videos, farmers from across the country were brought to tell their stories but nothing has been done about them” the chamber laments.
He stressed that galamsey is not such a huge problem that Ghana cannot fight, so if the president and the state institutions vested with powers to enforce laws complain that some people within the system are making it impossible to curb the galamsey menace, then they should relinquish their positions.
“For a government that has spent a colossal amount of $400 million dollars in the fight against galamsey to still be crying wolf that there are mafias making it impossible to fight galamsey successfully, I think the onus is on you to humbly step down. If you think the forces are greater than Ghana and for that matter the powers that the citizens have bestowed on you which you can’t use then you have no business occupying those positions” Morrison stated.
By Laud Nartey|3news.com|Ghana
