The Minister of Interior, Ambrose Dery, has hailed the media for its efforts in the fight against illegal mining through reports that exposed the alarming rates of destruction by the miners.
Speaking at a meeting with retired Police officers, the Minister said the huge media coverage, coupled with public education, has changed people’s perception on the strategies by the government to fight the menace.
“The media is doing very well in the case of galamsey; bringing the bad side of the things out and educating people. It shouldn’t be a ‘them and we’ situation, where it is government that has to come out with soldiers and police to go and stop it,” Mr. Dery said.
“We all have to recognize the threat to our very existence. Drinking water is no longer safe for us. We are losing land and development projects cannot even take place.”
“You could be walking in Ghana and before you realize you are sinking because you are walking over tunnels so I think that it is something we should all help on,” he added..
Meanwhile, Mr. Dery however, remained tight-lipped on government’s security arrangements to fight against illegal mining.
The Minerals Commission of Ghana is, however considering a suspension of the issuance of new licenses for small-scale mining to spark an overhaul of the country’s mining sector and deal with the illegal mining menace.
The Chief Executive Officer of the Minerals Commission, Dr. Tony Aubyn, made the revelation on the Citi Breakfast Show noting that his outfit is preparing a memo to be issued to the sector minister, John Peter Amewu, to this effect.
Mr. Amewu has, on his part, given a three-week ultimatum to all illegal miners to stop their activities or face the full rigour of the law.
He has assured that government has in the pipeline a well-rehearsed strategy to implement drastic punitive measures to ensure that the persons in the background who fund the activities of the illegal miners are also dealt with.
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(Via: CitiFM Online Ghana)
