President Akufo-Addo has ordered for the deployment of police and military personnel to clamp down on illegal small-scale mining, following calls for a decisive action continue to grow.
This decision comes after a national security meeting to assess the environmental damage and the impact of galamsey on river bodies.
On Wednesday, the Organised Labour issued a strong warning to the government, threatening to launch a nationwide strike by the end of September if immediate action is not taken to tackle the worsening galamsey crisis.
Others including religious leaders have also added their voices to the debate.
In a media engagement last night, Lands and Natural Resources Minister Samuel Abu Jinapor stated that the President has also ordered the decommissioning of illegal mining equipment if needed.
“The various Regional Security Councils have been tasked to conduct recording sounds and scrutiny of their various areas and begin to roll out swoops and enhance the enforcement regime. So in the days and weeks to come, we will see the heightened and rampant enforcement.
“The Ghana Police Service at various RESECs will be the first point of call, if the need arises we will take it a step further by including the Ghana Armed Forces and when the need arises, we will possibly begin the extraordinary measure of decommissioning equipment used for illegal small scale mining,” he stated.
Issues on galamsey and it’s impact grew after the management of Ghana Water Company Limited in the Central Region announced that there would be challenges with water supply in Cape Coast, Elmina, and surrounding communities.
