President Akufo Addo has commended the anti-galamsey task-force, Operation Vanguard for their fight against illegal mining in the country.
“I am sure the House will want to join me, in paying tribute to the members of our forces in the Operation Vanguard that are protecting our environment. They are Ghanaian patriots of the first order”, he said.
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Addressing Parliament in his second State of the Nation Address, President Akufo-Addo revealed that the state of river bodies and forests remain a great cause for worry, therefore it is our sacred duty to protect them.
He expressed hope in Ghanaians to help nurse the degraded lands and rivers back to health.
“Nothing will ever equate the attraction of the search for gold or diamond, and maybe the drama of actually finding some, but this generation of Ghanaians dare not preside over the destruction of our lands”, he noted.
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The anti-galamsey task-force were deployed to three regions; Ashanti, Western and Eastern about five months ago, to help sustain the fight against illegal mining.
Their operations have resulted in the arrest of at least 600 illegal miners including foreign nationals, particularly Chinese.
Read: HIGHLIGHTS of 2018 State of Nation Address (SONA).
The deployment of the joint police and military task-force came as a major boost to government’s fight against illegal mining in the country, following news of its devastating effects on the country’s land and water resources.
