Kate Gyamfua, the National Women's Organiser of the New Patriotic Party, (NPP), has raised concerns about the timing of the ongoing #StopGalamseyProtest.

According to her, the effects of illegal mining activities, particularly the pollution of water bodies, did not start recently, making the protest timing questionable, given its proximity to the pending elections.

In an interview on Adom FM and monitored by GhanaWeb on Friday, October 4, 2024, she stated, "We are left with barely two months to the elections. Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo in 2020 lost votes in all galamsey communities. So, at this moment, do you want him to go back and burn excavators of the miners? They should wait; after the elections, we will all protest over illegal mining activities. Were the water bodies polluted this month?"

She suggested that after the pending elections, both the National Democratic Congress (NDC) and NPP could unite to protest over the illegal mining menace, popularly known as galamsey.

Kate Gyamfua further criticised the public for not supporting the government's fight against galamsey.

"When the Nana Addo-led government started the fight against galamsey, did he receive the support of Ghanaians? If he did, perhaps we wouldn't have gotten to this point.

"After the elections, both the NDC and the NPP will join the protest. I wonder why they have chosen to demonstrate this month?" she quizzed.

Meanwhile, the Coalition of Concerned Citizens Against Galamsey, a youth-led group advocating against illegal mining activities, has clarified that their movement is driven solely by the desire to see a better Ghana, free from the detrimental effects of galamsey.

“We are a concerned youth. We came together to pull up this. The only interest we have is to wake up to a country where we can always defend our country against any form of government," the group’s convener, Brownson Adatsi, stated.

The ongoing protest seeks to raise awareness about the detrimental effects of illegal mining and advocate for stronger action to combat the menace.

Watch the video of the protest below:





JKB/AE

Meanwhile, catch up on the latest episode of The Lowdown on GhanaWeb TV with Etsey Atisu and his guest, Chief Alhassan Andani, below: