An aide to former Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, Dennis Miracles Aboagye, has said he does not support a State of Emergency.
According to Miracles Aboagye, a state of emergency would not necessarily end the menace.
Miracles Aboagye highlighted that the government should rather invest in social mindset reorientation in the fight against galamsey, where the real solutions lie.
Speaking on Eyewitness News, Miracles Aboagye stated, “Again, I keep saying politics is what is causing the problem for us in the fight against galamsey. I have never supported the call for a state of emergency. I didn’t support it when we were in government, and I don’t support it even now because I don’t think that is the solution”.
“I never supported the ban on small-scale mining… I didn’t support it then, and I won’t support it now, and my reason is simple. We implemented the ban on small-scale mining for two years; it worked, and we saw the water bodies clearing up. Then, when we lifted it, despite all the initiatives the government put in place, we still saw galamsey come back. We can’t go and implement a ban when it has already been done before,” he explained.
Miracles Aboagye added that community involvement is needed rather than drastic political measures.
He added, “Neither do I think a state of emergency may necessarily stop the situation. I think that in addition to all the law enforcement that the government is doing now, which all other governments have been doing, they should simply move in and invest in social mindset reorientation.
“What I saw with my eyes and what I have seen with my eyes today in Dunkwa Offin and Twifo Praso—if we can expose the community to the dire effect and draw their attention to how this thing is destroying their lives, in addition to enforcement, they would help to be able to succeed at it,” Miracles Aboagye added.
Meanwhile, the Fix The Country Movement has demanded that the John Mahama-led government declare a State of Emergency on galamsey and repeal Legislative Instrument (LI) 2462.
According to the movement, the Galamsey menace needs to be tackled head-on.
Speaking on Channel One, Edward Tuttor, a member of the movement, stated, “Galamsey needs to be tackled head-on. We don’t need to massage the issues. We don’t need to pretend as if we don’t know what is going on”.
“I was happy when the president… admitted publicly that galamsey is now a national emergency. If it is a national emergency, we are saying that the president should declare a state of emergency,” he insisted.
Edward Tuttor added, “The problem of galamsey is a clear-cut problem and the solution is clear-cut: repeal LI 2462 and declare a state of emergency”.
Additionally, Alexander Kwamena Afenyo-Markin, the minority leader of Parliament, has said allowing illegal mining (galamsey) to continue means we are complicit in selling tomorrow for today’s greed.
Afenyo-Markin noted that the destructive practice of illegal mining is destroying. Ghana’s future.
The minority leader charged Ghanaian youths to take charge in the fight against illegal mining, as the destructive practice is stealing their future, farmland, and poisoning the water bodies.
Delivering a keynote address at the Young Commons Forum Summit held at the University of Professional Studies, Accra (UPSA), Afenyo-Markin stated, “As we dream together, let us also confront the dangers that threaten our future. None is more urgent than the menace of illegal mining, otherwise known as galamsey.
This destructive practice is stealing your future. It is robbing farmers of fertile soil, poisoning the water of our children and destroying the environment you and I must inherit,” he declared.
He further added, “If we allow galamsey to continue unchecked, then we are complicit in selling tomorrow for today’s greed. I therefore challenge you, the youth, to be at the forefront of this fight to speak up, protect our rivers and insist on sustainable ways of harnessing Ghana’s natural resources”.
“Enough of the political rhetoric and games. The situation is real and the consequences are dire,” he added.
“If Ghana is to rise, it will not be because of one President, the Parliament or one policy. It will be because young people choose to rise to the occasion. It will be because you decide to serve a cause greater than yourselves. A degree or a job title is admirable, but character and integrity and service are what truly build a nation”, Afenyo-Makrin highlighted.