A former Deputy Director of Operations at the Forestry Commission, Rev. Charles Owusu, has dismissed suggestions that declaring a state of emergency in mining areas will help address illegal mining, popularly known as galamsey.
Speaking to Adom News in reaction to President John Mahama’s recent engagement with Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) at the Jubilee House, Rev. Owusu insisted that the real solution lies in empowering the security forces to act decisively.
“Declaring a state of emergency in mining areas won’t help. What the government should do is declare our water bodies and forest reserves as security zones. The President must create an Environmental Protection Unit within the Ghana Armed Forces, recruit officers, and station them permanently at the galamsey hotspots,” he said.
He recalled that during the previous administration, a temporary ban on small-scale mining led to some improvement in water bodies. However, according to him, the gains were eroded.
“The past government led by Nana Akufo-Addo took some measures by suspending mining for 18 months, and we all saw our water bodies begin to recover. But by the time President Akufo-Addo was leaving office, galamsey had become worse,” Rev. Owusu stressed.
President Mahama, during his meeting with CSOs on Friday, October 3, explained that the constitution empowers him to declare a state of emergency only on the advice of the National Security Council.
He, however, noted that the Council believes galamsey can be tackled without a state of emergency.
But Rev. Owusu argued that such a move would be unsustainable.
“How long are we going to maintain a state of emergency days, months, or years? That won’t solve galamsey. What we need is a strong military crackdown. If the President wants galamsey stopped today, he has the power and the mandate to do it,” he emphasized.
Source: Jagri Boaz Binyinjom
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