The Media Coalition Against Galamsey is calling for a renewed effort to tackle illegal mining activities in the wake of a deadly clash at AngloGold Ashanti’s Obuasi Mines.
The violent clash, which resulted in multiple fatalities, underscores the escalating dangers of illegal mining, which has led to significant environmental damage, including the pollution of water bodies and destruction of vegetation. The coalition is concerned that previous efforts to combat galamsey have lost momentum.
Kenneth Ashigbey, Convenor of the Media Coalition Against Galamsey, stressed the importance of decisive action to prevent further incidents in mining areas. He called for a cease-and-desist order to be issued to illegal miners, emphasizing that the government must take a firm stand on the issue.
“We’ve asked that he issues a cease and desist order so these illegal miners will realize that there’s a president in charge. Not only should the government act, but citizens must not be passive. Authorities must work together to implement the solutions that have been proposed. We need a multidimensional approach to address this complex problem,” Ashigbey stated.
Ashigbey also expressed concern over the government’s apparent lack of prioritization of the fight against illegal mining, which has led to a decline in advocacy on the issue.
“Due to the seeming silence following the change in power, we’ve seen the President act swiftly on various national issues, but we cannot say the same for the fight against galamsey, even though they signed the pact against it with our coalition,” he added.
The Coalition condemned the actions of the illegal miners involved in the attack on military personnel, calling it a criminal act. “We also know that the military also has their standard procedures, no military man who is working according to the rules they have will shoot at people who have surrendered, but the military will have to defend themselves when they are being attacked,” Ashigbey said.
He supported the President’s call for a probe into the incident, urging that perpetrators be held accountable. “We support the President’s call for an investigation and we hope it will be an independent investigation to ascertain what the truth is, and the punishment that has to be exacted to culprits should be done irrespective of who is involved,” he emphasized.
Ashigbey also suggested that involving traditional leaders is key to strengthening the fight against galamsey and the frequent attacks on mining sites.
“We need to harness the power of our traditional leaders as well and so we must bring our chiefs, queen mothers, and traditional priests into the whole issue of the governance around the mining process…Our subregion has had that preponderance of people attacking legal mines and it’s something we have to deal with,” he stated.
