Oliver Barker-Vormawor, a private legal practitioner and social activist, has said kingpins’ financing of galamsey activities remains untouched.
According to Vormawor, in the government’s galamsey fight so far, Ghanaians have yet to see the arrest of galamsey kingpins.
The social activist demanded a clear roadmap from state agencies on the strategy to fight the menace and criticised the lack of high-profile arrests.
Speaking on TV3 Key Point on September 27, 2025, Oliver Barker-Vormawor stated, “So far, we have yet to see the arrest of the kingpins who are financing galamsey activities”.
He added, “We need a roadmap from the agencies on how best we are fighting the menance”.
Also, Oliver Barker-Vormawor, in a separate interview, warned President John Dramani Mahama that the illegal mining, popularly known as galamsey, will haunt him even if the cedi goes to GHC6 to a dollar.
According to Vormawor, no economic gains can erase the galamsey stain on Mahama’s legacy.
He argued that, even if the economy records significant growth, neglecting the fight against illegal mining would undermine the administration’s credibility.
Speaking in an interview on Channel One TV’s The Point of View on Wednesday, September 24, Barker-Vormawor warned, “Anybody who feels that if the cedi were to go to GHC6 to a dollar, the galamsey question is not going to leave the President, it’s going to haunt him.”
Oliver Barker-Vormawor further highlighted that the John Mahama government’s credibility has been dented by failed galamsey promises.
He noted that the government has already fallen short of its own commitments by failing to repeal Legislative Instrument (L.I.) 2462 within its first 120 days.
The social activist added, “The truth is we’re facing an environmental crisis of proportions that none of us have ever imagined. The responses to it must consistently reassure public trust in the way you want to move.
The first thing the government promised us in its social contract was that within 120 days, it would repeal L. I 2462, and it comes in and does the opposite. Already you are sending signals”.
“When you send signals on some of the low-hanging fruit like that, it doesn’t create the impression that you are serious about it. Some of the back and forth of some of the people sent to the field involved in extorting money is a credibility denter. The deportation of the Chinese nationals involved in galamsey is a credibility denter,” Barker-Vormawor stressed.
Meanwhile, Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, the Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, has given a detailed breakdown of the government’s illegal mining, popularly known as galamsey fight, after eight months in office.
According to the Lands Minister, 1400 galamseyers have been arrested, 440 excavators and over 800 changfans have also been seized in 8 months of the NDC government.
He reaffirmed the Mahama government’s commitment to protecting the environment and also regulating opportunities in the mining sector.
Speaking on GTV on Wednesday, September 24, the Lands Minister detailed, “We have seized 440 excavators and more than 800 changfans. We have mobilised Blue Water Guards in key regions, and they are making a difference”.
“We are also now providing critical alternatives, and we are saying that if you want to do mining, we are going to give you the training and build your capacity to work with large-scale mining companies,” he explained.
See the post below:
Activist lawyer Oliver Barker-Vormawor says kingpins financing galamsey remain untouched. He demands a clear roadmap from state agencies on the strategy to fight the menace, criticizing the lack of high-profile arrests.#3NewsGH #TV3GH pic.twitter.com/uLROCHda8C
— #TV3GH (@tv3_ghana) September 27, 2025