GNAT dismisses Akufo-Addo's galamsey committee as 'dead on arrival'

Accra, Ghana - The Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT) has rejected the newly formed five-member ministerial committee tasked with addressing illegal mining (galamsey) activities, calling it "dead on arrival."

GNAT's General Secretary, Thomas Musah, expressed skepticism about the committee's ability to bring new solutions to the galamsey fight, citing the ministers' impending electoral commitments.

Musah made the comments on Channel One TV's 'I Stand Against Galamsey' campaign, where he outlined GNAT's five demands to tackle the issue:

1. Declare a state of emergency
2. Evacuate mining equipment from forest reserves and water bodies
3. Revoke Law 2462 and withdraw mining licenses in protected areas
4. Deploy security forces to remove and destroy mining equipment
5. Establish a special court to prosecute those involved in galamsey

“The constitution of the new committee by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo is dead on arrival because the only new person there is the Minister for Employment and Labour Relations and these ministers will soon go and contest in their various constituencies and there is no way they will get time to get this thing done.

“In any case, the promise [to end galamsey] was made by the president and not ministers and we have gone past this stage already and therefore the invitation by the committee for us to meet them on Tuesday is a non-starter and we are asking that a state of emergency must be declared given the evidence that we have," GNAT’s General Secretary, Thomas Musah stated.

GNAT's stance comes after President Akufo-Addo announced the committee, chaired by National Security Minister Albert Kan-Dapaah, to engage stakeholders and assess government efforts to combat galamsey.

Source: Lead News Online