The Ghana Catholic Bishops’ Conference has once again reiterated its calls for President John Dramani Mahama to declare a state of emergency on illegal mining (galamsey).
According to the Catholic Bishops’ in January and May 2025, they met President Mahama, but his response to their demand for a declaration of a state of emergency was unsatisfactory.
The Catholic Bishops cried out that once-pristine rivers such as the Pra, Ankobra, Birim, Offin, and Ayensu are now poisoned with mercury and toxic effluents.
They cited that turbidity levels in the Ayensu River have reached 32,000 NTU compared to the Ghana Water Company’s treatment threshold of 2,500 NTU, warning that purification is now impossible.
In a statement issued on Monday, September 15, 2025, the Bishops wrote, “Illegal and unregulated mining, commonly known as galamsey, has become one of the gravest afflictions of our time.
It ravages our rivers and forests, poisons our soil, endangers public health, corrupts governance, erodes our moral fibre, and extinguishes livelihoods.
This is not a routine challenge to be managed with half-measures; it is a national emergency requiring decisive, extraordinary response,” the bishops said.
The Bishop highlighted that the desecration of creation through galamsey is a grave sin against God.
“The earth is the Lord’s and all that is in it. To desecrate creation through galamsey is not only an offence against neighbour; it is a grave sin against God Himself, the Creator and Owner of all,” they declared.
The Catholic Bishops statement added, “Farmers can no longer trust the land to sustain their families, and our capacity to feed the nation diminishes. Children, seduced by the mirage of quick riches, forsake school for perilous pits, many losing their lives in collapses that are both tragic and preventable.”
“This betrayal of trust cuts to the very marrow of our national identity. We call such leaders to repentance without delay.”
The Catholic Bishops further expressed dismay at President Mahama’s refusal to declare a state of emergency.
They added, “In both January and May 2025, delegations of our Conference raised these concerns directly with him, only to be met with unsatisfactory responses focused narrowly on economic gain.
“At his ‘Meet the Press’ session of 10 September 2025, he dismissed calls for a state of emergency. This is profoundly troubling. The hour is late. Delay is betrayal. Now, not tomorrow, not later, is the time to act.”
The Ghana Catholic Bishops’ Conference, however, warned that declaring a state of emergency in galamsey-affected areas may be necessary, but it is not sufficient to address the full extent of the devastation.
“While urgent, a declaration is insufficient. Ghana requires a holistic, integrated national strategy”, the statement read.
According to the Bishops, the government must prosecute not only the poor but also the powerful.
“His government must prosecute not only the poor but also the powerful; not only the weak but also the well-connected. Without courage, no policy will stand, no law will hold, no declaration will succeed.”
“This struggle is not merely about law enforcement. It concerns the very soul of Ghana. It is about whether we choose life or death, blessing or curse. With God’s grace, let us choose life, for ourselves, for our children, and for generations yet unborn.”
However, Felix Kwakye Ofosu, the minister of state in charge of Government Communications, has dared anyone who says illegal mining (galamsey) has become worse under President John Mahama to provide evidence to back their claims.
The Minister noted that the claims must be backed with empirical evidence and not just guesswork.
According to Kwakye Ofosu, the Mahama-led government is dedicated to combating galamsey.
Speaking during an interview on Joy FM on Monday, September 15, Kwakye Ofosu stated, “Those who say galamsey has worsened under President Mahama must prove it with empirical evidence. We cannot allow perceptions or political point-scoring to overshadow facts”.
The Presidential Spokesperson revealed that Mahama is keeping the option of a state of emergency open and will only go that route if the situation becomes necessary.
He added, “Let me indicate that on the matter of state of emergency, the president said that there are conventional approaches that are currently being deployed that he believes would help us achieve the objective of wiping out this canker once and for all. And that when it becomes necessary, a state of emergency may be deployed”.
“It actually means that you set aside laws as they are and adopt extraordinary, sometimes very harsh, very drastic measures in order to beat back a particular problem.
“It comes with its own difficulties, and therefore, the declaration of the same must be based on tangible reasoning. You must have a sufficient basis to do that so that you are very clear that the consequences that will result will be worth the effort”, he noted.
Felix Kwakye Ofosu added, “He believes earnestly that currently, some gains are being made that could be sustained. And as and when we get to a stage when it is absolutely necessary to deploy those measures that will create some absolute discomfort for ordinary citizens, and may involve measures that may not necessarily be in tandem with the way that our laws should function, he will take the decision”.
“The government appreciates the genuine concern surrounding the issue of galamsey because of the threats that it poses. It has naturally become an emotive subject. People are deeply concerned about it, and they want urgent action. The government understands that fully, and such urgent action is underway,” he said.
Kwakye Ofosu added that John Mahama, since becoming president, has done everything necessary to ensure that we combat galamsey.
He further added that Mahama never gave any timelines for ending illegal mining, popularly known as galamsey.
The minister explained, “To be fair, if you want to assess a president, you will have to take him by his own words and actions, the commitments that he made. President Mahama did not give any timelines to ending galamsey”.
“He said at the media encounter that he was not under any illusion that by the wink of the magic wand, galamsey will end because it is an insidious problem,” Mr Kwakye Ofosu added.
He added, “Government fully appreciates the genuine concerns people have expressed on galamsey, and these are not matters we take lightly”.
“We cannot pretend it is an easy fight, but what we can assure Ghanaians is that the government has not lost sight of its duty to protect lives, livelihoods and the environment,” he noted.
See the statement below:
