Galamsey Issue Not An Easy One- Mahama

President John Dramani Mahama has acknowledged the fight against illegal mining, known as galamsey as one of the herculean tasks confronting his administration.

He told the Council of State on Monday that he had streamlined the fight which had been taken up by task forces after observing indiscipline on their part.

“One of them is the issue of illegal mining… It’s not an easy one.”

“Just this morning I had to summon the stakeholders- the Anti-galamsey fight- to my office in order that we can streamline their activities because everyone is running helter-skelter doing whatever they want. It has led to the rise of illegal task forces that are taking advantage of the situation.”

The government of Ghana has banned individuals and organized groups from engaging in any form of clampdown on illegal mining activities across the country.

This mandate is now the sole preserve of the newly established National Anti-illegal Mining Operations Secretarial (NAIMOS).

Individuals or groups who seek to undertake any form of anti-galamsey operation are to seek the express approval of the Secretariat.

“The Ministry wishes to emphatically state that no person, individual, or organised group is allowed to embark on any anti-illegal mining operation without consulting the duly established Secretariat, which has been formally tasked for that purpose,” the Ministry announced last week.

“For the avoidance of doubt, all anti-galamsey operations, swoops, and raids conducted without the express approval and authorization of the Secretariat are strongly discouraged, and we urge all concerned Ghanaians to take note of this arrangement and comply accordingly.”

The mandate of the Secretariat is to initiate, coordinate, and supervise all anti-illegal mining operations across the country.

Source: https://opemsuo.com/author/hajara-fuseini/