President Akufo-Addo’s supposed commitment to fighting illegal mining was borne out of joining a bandwagon he did not understand its cause, private legal practitioner, Martin Luther Kpebu, has indicated.
The President, according to Mr. Kpebu, was “sleeping on the job” before joining the media campaign which was started by a couple of individual journalists in the country.
Just as people join certain causes without in-dept appreciation of what they holistically entail, Martin Kpebu says it is because the President saw the media campaign that he had to join in to make some headlines.
On the KeyPoints on TV3 Saturday, September 07, 2024, he noted that the President has no political will to fight illegal mining in the country.
“It’s the media that started the fight so he joined later. So, for a President who is sleeping on the job and the media starts a fight…”
“So, you (media) started and then he joined so such a person who joined the bandwagon, you know sometimes someone starts a good idea and you get a lot of followers but they don’t quite understand it and time has proven that he did not understand the bandwagon he joined because he never had any political will to execute what he’s saying. I’m sure by now we all can confidently say; after eight years you see that this is a president you can’t point to anything you can say that this man speaks with conviction, this is his passion,” he stated.
The issue on galamsey has become worse despite President Akufo-Addo assuring Ghanaians that he was going to put his job on the line to fight it. But the menace has skyrocketed with water bodies being polluted and forest reserves being destroyed.
Some joint health sector unions have, meanwhile, called on the government to immediately ban all small-scale mining activities in the country.
In a joint statement, the leadership of these unions emphasized the critical need for the government to bolster regulatory and enforcement agencies to effectively combat the galamsey menace.
The public sector health associations and unions, including the Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwives Association, Health Services Workers Union, Ghana Medical Association, Government and Hospital Pharmacists Association, Medical Laboratory Professional Workers Union, Mortuary Workers Association of Ghana, Ghana Association of Certified Anesthetists, Health Accounting Staff Association, and the Ghana Physician Assistant Association, have expressed grave concerns over the detrimental impact of galamsey on water bodies.
“The Ghana Water Company recently reported a reduction in water production by over 60% in the Western Region, 30% in the Central Region, with a total loss of 50% of treated water due to pollution and silting from galamsey activities,” the statement highlighted.
The union leaders are demanding swift government action to protect the nation’s water resources.
“As associations and trade unions in the health sector, holding collective bargaining agreements on behalf of health sector employees, we demand that the government immediately bans all small-scale mining operations,” the statement read.
They further urged the government to strengthen regulatory enforcement by providing resources to relevant security agencies to clamp down on violators and ensure swift prosecution.
“All political parties should make public declarations and publish duly signed documents on their commitment to fight illegal and unethical mining activities in Ghana,” the unions added.
‘Akufo-Addo thrives on slogans, he can’t walk his talk’ – Kpebu on ‘galamsey’ fight
