Speaker of Parliament, Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin has said President Akufo-Addo will be questioning his commitment to the fight against galamsey after his ‘mere’ promise in 2017.
President Akufo-Addo during his first tenure in July 2017 promised to put his presidency on the line for the fight against the illegal mining menace.
The President said this while addressing a two-day workshop on galamsey for traditional leaders drawn from different parts of the country.
“I have said it in the Cabinet, and perhaps this is the first time I am making this public, that I am prepared to put my Presidency on the line on this matter,” Akufo-Addo noted.
Eight years on since President Akufo-Addo’s promise, galamsey activities have been on the rise in the country with several reports of its impact on water bodies.
Speaking in an interview with Beatrice Adu on TV3, Alban Bagbin lamented the toll of galamsey activities on the youth and nation as a whole.
According to him, “it is an indictment on the leadership” of the country for the youth to be engaged in galamsey because there is no other source of livelihood.
“I know his conscience will be disturbing him now. I think he underestimated the challenge. What we have in Ghana is despondency. People are losing hope in the future of the country. Young men and women who are aware of the risk involved in illegal mining yet they defy everything to put their lives at that risk. It tells us something us leaders,” Bagbin said.
Bagbin further described galamsey activities as a “serious threat” to the nation.
In the past few days, pressure has piled up on government to put an end to galamsey activities. Several Civil Society Organisations have criticized government for its silence on the menace.
The latest action taken is from the Organised Labour which has threatened to stage nationwide strike if government fails to ban all galamsey activities by September 30.
Source: 3news.com
