In the fight against illegal mining, Johnson Asiedu Nketiah, the National Chairman of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), has resisted calls for a state of emergency, warning that doing so could jeopardise Ghana’s democracy.
He admitted that illegal mining is still a major national issue in an interview with Channel One TV’s Face to Face on Tuesday, August 26, but cautioned that suspending constitutional rule in an attempt to address it will lead to additional issues rather than solutions.
We are working on the Galamsey fight and are hopeful that we can resolve it. However, I disagree with the proclamation of a state of emergency that others have suggested. You can demand certain actions in your annoyance that you might come to regret once we start putting them into effect,” he warned.
Mr. Nketiah contended that many people advocating for such harsh measures would not be completely aware of the emergency rule’s repercussions.
Declaring a state of emergency in order to cope with Galamsey is equivalent to suspending the constitution. People are free to shoot and kill. How can you be certain that the people killing and firing are the ones engaged in combat with Galamsey? That’s a different story,” he said.
He emphasised that the fight against illegal mining necessitates extensive reforms based on the rule of law and urged the public to concentrate on putting up positive and long-lasting solutions.
However, he insists that rather than drastic steps that would jeopardise Ghana’s democracy, the way forward must be based on the rule of law and reforms that are driven by consensus.
