Eric Kevin Elikem Kwame Kotoko, the Deputy Chief Executive Officer of the Forestry Commission, has stated that the New Patriotic Party (NPP) has no moral authority to comment on illegal mining in the country.
He avers the NPP lost power partly because it failed to deal decisively with the galamsey menace during its eight years in office, and therefore cannot turn around to criticise efforts by the current leadership to deal with the menace.
He argues that the current administration is taking steps to do things right and sanitise the sector, unlike what pertained under the previous government.
Speaking on TV3’s BigIssue segment on the NewDay morning show on Monday, October 26, 2026, Kotoko said the NPP is only attempting to score political points with the galamsey debate.
“If we are talking galamsey etc, the NPP would have absolutely no moral authority to want to even pass a comment on it,” he said, explaining that it “was one of the major reasons they were voted out.”
According to him, the Akufo-Addo/Bawumia-led administration had no clue in tackling the canker, the reason it baffles him when they appear to be wielding all the sense in dealing with the crime.
“Because they seemed not to have any solution to the problem at the time they were in power,” he added.
His comments were in reaction to the fallout from comments by the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Ghana Gold Board (GoldBod), Sammy Gyamfi, in a video on galamsey operations which has since gone viral on social media.
In the video, Sammy Gyamfi said persons mining in areas not close to roadsides and water bodies should be allowed to mine until the GoldBod regularises their operations.
Some stakeholders have interpreted this as reckless and downplaying the severity of the menace.
The Ghana Coalition Against Galamsey has criticised the comments, describing them as disappointing and inconsistent with the fight against illegal mining and has called for a probe into the comments which it says appear to justify the act.
However, the Forestry Commission Deputy CEO believes the criticism of Gyamfi is being exploited by the NPP for political gain without any moral justification.
He said under the Akufo-Addo administration, the fight against galamsey collapsed despite several interventions and pronouncements, and the situation even appeared to be endorsed at the highest level.
“In fact it looked like even the President at the time was endorsing the illegality with the commentary that was very reckless and irresponsible by Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, at the time when he seemed to be shielding Chairman Wontumi,” he said.
He cited the burning of Wontumi’s excavators and his subsequent procession to court to secure compensation, a move he said was rejected by the court after he was found guilty.
“If you recall, even Chairman Wontumi who once had his excavator burnt, later went to court, trying to seek compensation that what was done him was wrong. The court rejected him and found him rather guilty and his case was thrown out,” he stated.
He said a responsible government was mandated by law to prosecute Wontumi after that ruling, but the then government failed to act.
“A very responsible government at the time was mandated by law, naturally to prosecute Wontumi. But they didn’t. They let him lose and allowed until one has come and is trying to do things right,” Kotoko added.
