They screamed under Akufo-Addo, but now they’re silent – Assafuah on galamsey in Mahama’s hometown
Member of Parliament for Old Tafo and NPP spokesperson, Hon. Vincent Ekow Assafuah, has taken a swipe at critics of the former Akufo-Addo administration, accusing them of hypocrisy over their silence on the current surge in illegal mining—this time in the hometown of President John Dramani Mahama.
Reacting to a report by investigative journalist Erastus Asare Donkor, which revealed that illegal miners have taken over the Yonkamba stream, a tributary of the Black Volta in Tumtumba, Bole-Bamboi—the President’s own hometown—Assafuah questioned the sudden disappearance of public criticism.
“They said President Akufo-Addo had failed to fight galamsey.
“They insulted him, demonized him, and voted his government out, claiming he had lost the war against illegal mining,” he stated.
According to Erastus’ investigation, the Yonkamba stream in Tumtumba, Savannah Region, has been overrun by illegal miners, raising serious environmental and water safety concerns in the heart of Mahama’s home constituency.
But Assafuah believes the public and civil society have gone silent because the issue no longer fits their political narrative.
“Today, under President John Mahama, illegal miners have taken over the Yonkamba stream, a tributary of the Black Volta in his own hometown, Tumtumba, Bole-Bamboi,” he said.
“But where are those loud voices now? Where are the worker unions? Where is the media outrage? Where is civil society?”
He further criticized the inconsistency in how different administrations are treated in the fight against illegal mining, popularly known as galamsey.
“They screamed failure under Akufo-Addo, but today they are silent even when galamsey is destroying the President’s own backyard,” Assafuah added.
