In an interview on Newsfile on JoyNews, a lecturer at the University of Ghana expressed deep disappointment in the inability of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) government to address the ongoing issue of illegal mining, commonly referred to as Galamsey.
Despite promising to tackle the menace when given the mandate, the lecturer believes that the government has not lived up to its promises.
Referring to the broader issue of social activism in Ghana, the lecturer noted, “So he [Akufo-Addo] inherited from a previous government where already this kind of social activism was occurring.”
This statement underscores the ongoing struggle within Ghana to curb the devastation of its natural resources, particularly its forests, as a result of illegal mining activities.
The importance of Ghana’s forests cannot be overstated, and the lecturer was vocal about the need to preserve them, stressing, “We are a country in the sub-region that has among the lowest proportion of forest, and then we like hailing our greatness. We know that we need the forest for our climate, we need it for our water, we need it for our livelihood, we need it for our food.”
Indeed, Ghana’s forests are critical to maintaining the climate, ensuring a stable water supply, and supporting the livelihoods of many citizens who depend on them for food and income.
However, over the years, illegal mining has taken a severe toll on the environment, and the government’s promises to combat it have remained largely unfulfilled.
The lecturer further emphasized that while the NPP government has failed to deliver on this crucial promise, it is also vital that solutions are put forward.
“The NPP government has not been able to deal with this in my view, but at least, I was really expecting some prescriptions for what could have been done, some apology to us that this hasn’t happened, and some prescriptions for what the incoming government should do,” she said.
