President John Dramani Mahama has stated that declaring a state of emergency would be his last resort because Ghana already has laws in place that are capable of dealing with persons involved in illicit mining.
He made these assertions during his media encounter on Wednesday September 10, in Accra. He acknowledged public concerns on the emerging effects of the activities of illegal mining activities and the need for prompt interventions to address galamsey operations; yet, he advised against hastily declaring a state of emergency.
“I have hesitated to declare a state of emergency in the galamsey campaign because we have not fully utilized the existing powers available to us without such a declaration.”
“We possess the authority to detain individuals and seize any such items.” The legislation regarding forest conservation allows us sufficient authority to take action”, President Mahama explained.
He stressed that such declaration should be regarded solely as a final option and reaffirmed his administration’s dedication to more rigorously enforce regulations.
