The Coordinator of Eco-Conscious Citizens, Awula Serwah, has called on President John Dramani Mahama to take decisive and immediate action against any government appointees found to be involved in or complicit in illegal mining, warning that failure to do so could further entrench environmental destruction across the country.
Speaking on the JoyNews AM Show on Monday, February 9, Awula Serwah said the long-standing fight against illegal mining, popularly known as galamsey, has stalled because of what she described as an entrenched political system that continues to enable environmental harm.
“We have always said that we need the political will to fight irresponsible mining which is causing ecocide and poisoning us,” she said. “This shows why the fight isn’t going anywhere — there is an entrenched system which is perpetuating ecocide.”
Her comments come in the wake of recent investigative reports highlighting alleged links between politically exposed persons and illegal mining operations, raising fresh concerns about accountability at the highest levels of governance.
Awula Serwah reminded the President of his public commitment to remove any appointee implicated in illegal mining, insisting that the promise must now be fulfilled without delay.
“The President himself said that any of his appointees who are involved in illegal mining or are complicit will be removed, and that is what needs to be done,” she stressed.
She pointed to the recent recall of Ghana’s High Commissioner to Nigeria as an example of swift executive action, arguing that the same urgency should apply to officials linked to environmental crimes.
“We have all seen the speed with which the High Commissioner to Nigeria was recalled. We would welcome the same speed in removing all those involved in this,” she added.
Awula Serwah also commended JoyNews for its investigative work on illegal mining, acknowledging the risks journalists take to expose wrongdoing.
“Your investigators have put their lives on the line to uncover this web,” she said. “If the President does not deal decisively with it, then God help us.”
Illegal mining remains a major national concern, with its impact felt in polluted water bodies, degraded farmlands and public health risks, despite successive government interventions aimed at curbing the practice.
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