The Member of Parliament for Afigya Kwabre North, Collins Adomako Mensah, has called on President John Dramani Mahama’s administration to go beyond public pronouncements and take decisive action to tackle illegal mining (galamsey) and other pressing national issues.
tThe MP said while there have been visible efforts by the government, the situation on the ground still does not reflect the promises made by the President and his ministers.
“Yes, I have seen a lot of activities the President is talking about, the Minister is running around, but the Trades Union Congress is telling you that what is happening on the ground does not reflect the rhetoric being made by the President and the Minister,” Adomako Mensah stated.
“And I think the President, the government and the minister must go beyond the rhetoric into action. They promised a few things. I believe that they can start from there.”
The lawmaker specifically mentioned the government’s pledge to repeal Legislative Instrument (L.I.) 2462, which regulates small-scale mining activities, as one of the key commitments yet to be realized.
“They promised that they’re going to repeal the L.I 2462. I have been told that the Minister has sent some documentation to the Attorney General and that when Parliament resumes, it will be laid. I’m just hoping that this time round, it will be laid,” he explained.
Adomako Mensah also drew attention to the Mahama administration’s promise to use Artificial Intelligence (AI) to combat galamsey, noting that no tangible steps have been taken so far.
“I hope this time they will make do on the promise. They talked about using AI to fight galamsey; I have not seen any activity around that as promised in their manifesto,” he said.
The MP further urged the government to focus on apprehending the real culprits behind illegal mining instead of targeting small-scale operators.
“The President talked about going after the kingpins. I’m sure National Security can assist in the investigation to get to the kingpins. The first thing they should do is to fulfil the promise they made to Ghanaians,” he emphasised.
