Media personality Omanhene Kwabena Asante has said that he does not concur with calls from a section of the public for the government to ban all forms of mining activities in the country.
According to him, the measure of deploying military and police personnel to the mining sites to deal with the culprits would not help to overcome the menace totally.
The Adom TV presenter asserted that it would be better to engage in intensive sensitization of the people involved in illegal mining activities in order to convince them to desist from it willingly rather than applying force.
“We cannot use the same old strategy like deploying the police and military to the water bodies to combat the illegal miners. I was at Wassa Akropong advocating against illegal mining, and a young guy asked me to give him GH¢30,000 to buy a concession, and he would pay me off with one million cedis in a month's time.
“So with such a person, you need to take your time and talk to them. That is why I totally disagree with the Labour Union’s request for the government to ban all forms of mining,” he said in Twi while speaking on Adom TV.
This comes after Organised Labour served notice that it will embark on a strike on October 10, 2024, if the government fails to respond to the calls.
The labour group has met with the government to discuss their request for a ban on illegal mining activities across the nation; however, no agreement was reached.
Religious leaders, political figures, and state institutions have all added their voices for the galamsey menace to end.
Some aggrieved Ghanaians embarked on a three-day strike, calling on the government to take action against galamsey.
Watch the video below:
ASEM YI DI KA: We can no longer rely on the same old strategies to combat illegal mining, Omanhene says, recounting his encounter with a young illegal miner#Badwam pic.twitter.com/wbw9ZJMzH5
— Adom TV (@adom_tv) October 7, 2024
SB/OGB