The President of Ghana, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, has stated that the practice of galamsey continues to be an existential threat despite the great achievements that have been achieved in the fight against galamsey.
Akufo-Addo believes that the battle against illegal mining can be won if all Ghanaians participate, and he encourages them to remain vigilant until the problem has been eliminated.
The President of Ghana stated that galamsey must be halted as he was speaking in Accra at a natural resource stakeholders forum.
“Despite the fact that a great deal of progress was made in this field between 2017 and 2021, unlawful small-scale mining is still a problem and continues to be a danger to our basic existence. However, we are unable to take a break so long as these unlawful acts continue,” President Akufo-Addo stated.
In July of 2017, during a conference against illegal mining that President Akufo-Addo organized to get Ghana’s chiefs involved in the fight against galamsey, he placed his presidency on the line for the cause. His goal was to encourage the chiefs of Ghana to join the fight against galamsey.
He swore that he would put an end to the threat, even if it meant that he would not win the presidency.
The narrative has taken an unexpected turn as a result of the fact that several stakeholders have lashed out at the president for breaking his vow to combat galamsey.
In a 37-page document, the former chairman of the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Illegal Mining accused government officials of indulging in galamsey or interfering in his work. The committee has since been disbanded.
However, in response to the allegations, the presidency stated that the document in question is Professor Frimpong-Boateng’s list of complaints and that it should be considered hearsay at most.
Professor Frimpong-Boateng stated that he still stands by everything that he mentioned in the paper and that he has no plans to retract it.
Additionally, he confirmed that he has formally conveyed his desire to honor an invitation by the Office of the Special Prosecutor. He stated that this willingness was communicated to the office.
“I have communicated formally my willingness to attend the invitation and to support the OSP in its work.”