Senior Vice President of Imani Africa Kofi Bentil has stated that galamsey (illegal mining) is getting worse under the government of President John Mahama, asserting that the government has found ways to benefit from galamsey gold instead of fighting the menace that constitutes an existential threat to the country as a whole.
Speaking on Newsfile on Joy News today [ Sturday, October 4,2025], Mr Bentil noted that the government has made no progress in the fight against galamsey but is interested in harnessing galamsey gold for the benefit of the economy.
“Activity is not the same as progress. We’re seeing a lot of activity, a lot of stimulation, a lot of talk, no progress. Galamsey is getting worse. So we don’t need more talk…Look, don’t look at what people are saying, look at the ground. And you’d know what’s going on. Let me give you an example: despite all the mountain of talk, when this government came in, nothing or not much has been done in terms of stopping galamsey. But we’ve been able to establish Goldbod, pass the law, pass LI, set up the institution, got onto the grounds,start buying gold. And we’ve mobilized billions of dollars of gold and done all kinds of things all within this space but we’ve not been able to solve galamsey,” noted.
He is certain that the government will not win the fight against galamsey because there is no sincerity in the fight.
His comments come after the government, led by President John Mahama met with civil society organisations to look at the way forward in the fight against galamsey.
But speaking on the same show, Inusah Fuseini, a former NDC MP and Lands and Natural Resources Minister defended the government’s fight against galamsey, stressing that much progress has been made and innovations to the fight introduced. The stationing of security officers in forest reserves, he explained, is one such innovation.
