The Centre for Public Opinion and Awareness (CenPOA) has called for the temporary ban of all forms of mining in Ghana as part of the efforts to deal with the illegal mining menace popularly known as galamsey.

The Centre says the ban should not only be placed on small-scale mining, but it should affect large-scale mining.

Kamal Alhassan, a research fellow at the Centre, noted that the reason why the country has failed in addressing galamsey is because the leaders who are supposed to deal with the problem are also participants in the illegality.

Speaking in an interview with Kwabena Agyapong on Frontline on Rainbow Radio 87.5FM, Kamal Alhassan said the leaders have used all available means, including the burning of excavators and military intervention, yet galamsey is still in place.

He questioned why the equipment used by illegal miners would be burnt, but the gold seized is not disclosed to Ghanaians.

”We’ve burnt excavators but have they disclosed the volume of gold seized to Ghanaians? That’s my point. This approach won’t solve the problem.

"Given the current situation, it’s not just about locals; our leaders, Chinese, and other foreigners are involved. Our leaders are aware of the illegal mining. Foreigners are illegally mining in our forests.

"To address this, in addition to declaring a state of emergency and temporarily banning all mining activities, regardless of licenses. This includes Ashanti Goldfields and other companies. We need to assess the situation and implement measures to combat this issue," he said.

He stated that it would not make sense to ban only small-scale mining and allow the big mining firms to operate and mine the gold when we are not even benefiting from the mining activities.

To him, the mining activities have become a burden "because it sent us into slavery and colonialism. It is now destroying our water bodies and forest reserves and killing human beings.

"The solution at this point is to ban all types of mining. We don’t have to allow any form of mining, so we sit down, we analyse, we talk, we have stakeholder dialogues, and we come out with concrete solutions. We don’t have to send soldiers over there.

"They have already been compromised because everyone is hungry and facing financial difficulties, and so they have been compromised, and if we send them back to the place, they would be compromised again. We need to fight this menace with technology. We have technologies with different resources that can be deployed to the galamsey areas, and it will be far more efficient in dealing with the galamsey," he said.

When asked about the financial implications of the ban on all forms of mining activities and its effects on the companies working in accordance with the law, he said he does not believe there is a single company in the country that is practising in accordance with our mining laws.

"To adopt a holistic approach to the mining issue, the government should institute a temporary, not indefinite, ban on all forms of mining. This would facilitate a comprehensive evaluation of the entire system, rather than addressing a single facet.

An overhaul of the energy mining system is essential. By calling for a pause, I aim to bring together key stakeholders, including major mining companies, small-scale operators, traditional leaders, politicians, and relevant agencies, to collectively devise and implement concrete solutions. Following this, mining can resume responsibly and efficiently, respecting our way of life and the law."

Kamal Alhassan is a PhD candidate at the Douglas L. Wilder School of Government and Public Affairs, Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU).

His research interests include Criminal Justice, Security, and emergency preparedness.