President John Dramani Mahama has charged his newly sworn-in Ministers to wage a strong fight against illegal mining, locally known as “Galamsey” in the country.
His directive has come on the back of yet again, growing concerns about a lack of political will to address illegal mining issues bedeviling the country.
President Mahama has sworn-in the third batch of his newly approved ministers for the Ministry for Lands and Natural Resources andthe Ministry for Justice. He has also sworn in the minister-designate for Attorney General and the Minister-designate for Interior.
Speaking at the swearing-in ceremony of the third batch, the president instructed his ministers to ensure the expedition of processes to carckdown on illegal mining activities.
“I urge them to take immediate steps to ensure the arrest and prosecution of any persons or groups of persons engaged in this illegality,” said the President Mahama.
Furthermore, government officials are warned about getting involved in the illegal activity, as president Mahama issued a firm statement that none of his members in government is allowed to engage in small-scale mining.
“As Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, you’ll be responsible for protecting the environment from destructive galamsey activities and ensuring the effective management of our natural resources.”
“For the avoidance of doubt, this government has not given any person or group permission to engage in any person or group permission to engage in any form of mining within our forest reserves,” he stated.
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