President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has challenged the flagbearer of the opposition National Democratic Congress(NDC) John Mahama to declare his stand on the fight against galamsey.

During one of his tours in the Northern part of Ghana, Akufo-Addo slammed the former president, John Mahama for not declaring his stand on the fight against galamsey.

Akufo-Addo disclosed that the NPP lost in most mining communities because H.E John Mahama visited these mining sites to promise amnesty for illegal miners who had been arrested due to galamsey.

“Someone who wants to be president can’t change his mouth; one side of his mouth is saying one thing, and the other side is saying another thing. During the 2020 elections, after the government had acted on galamsey, he went around all the mining sites in Ghana telling them that when he becomes president he will give amnesty to all those arrested because of galamsey activity, that’s why NPP lost in all those constituencies.”

“We want the NDC Presidential Candidate to come clean and tell us where he stands”. He challenged.

A few weeks ago, John Dramani Mahama, the National Democratic Congress (NDC) presidential candidate for Election 2024 disclosed that he will wage a “ruthless war” against galamsey [illegal mining] while promoting responsible small-scale mining practices when he is elected as President on December 7, 2024.

Mr Mahama outlined his plan aimed at environmental reclamation and tighter mining regulations to address the devastation caused by illegal small-scale mining, popularly known as galamsey while speaking to the clergy in Accra on Tuesday [Oct 1, 2024].

He said under his plan, an audit of all mining concessions will be conducted to identify the beneficial owners, and these owners will be held accountable for illegal mining activities within their concession areas.

His strategy will also prohibit new mining leases in forest reserves and tighten regulations on mining in water bodies, imposing harsher penalties on offenders through amendments to the Minerals and Mining Law.

He further disclosed that all public officials, including politicians, would be prohibited from participating in mining activities, whether legal or illegal.