The NDC Parliamentary Candidate for Kumawu, Kwasi Amankwaa, has accused President Nana Akufo-Addo of failing to tackle the illegal mining menace also known in local parlance as galamsey.

He stated that the president could not talk about the impact of galamsey and what the government has done so far to tackle the canker during his state of the nation address earlier this week.

Amankwaa, who was speaking on Maakye program on Kessben FM in Kumasi, argued that the impact of galamsey on the river bodies in the country is devastating, adding that the rivers are worse off than Akufo-Addo met them.

He wondered why candidate Akufo-Addo in 2016 campaigned to tackle galamsey but has failed in the fight, leaving water bodies murkier than before.

“We have traveled far a bit and we know what good governance does to some countries… I listened to the president. But you see, we have problems in this country but the one who is the leader of the country did not acknowledge our challenges,” he said.

He continued, “We elect leaders to solve problems but this president who campaigned to solve the problems has done worse. He didn’t even acknowledge the challenges. He didn’t talk about youth unemployment and illegal mining.”

Amankwaa further went on to say that Akufo-Addo “should have talked about galamsey because it is a canker that has destroyed our water bodies.”

He described Akufo-Addo’s galamsey fight as a waste of state funds because the river bodies keep getting worse everyday.

“To me, I think Akufo-Addo’s address was a waste of time. He only came to campaign for Bawumia, his mate. All he was interested in was elections and how to get Bawumia to succeed him,” he concluded.