Galamsey has moved from ordinary citizens to become a trans-national organized crime – Prof Aning

Security Expert, Prof. Kwesi Aning, has described the activities of galamsey in the country as a form of transnational organized crime.

Speaking on Joy FM’s Super Morning Show on Monday, September 2, 2024, Prof. Aning stated that illegal mining activities are posing an existential threat to the country and putting its international reputation at risk.

He was commenting on the recent statement by Ghana Water Limited regarding the challenge of supplying water to parts of the Central Region due to the pollution of the Pra River from galamsey activities.

“This has moved beyond ordinary citizens. We are talking about levels of collusion spanning every single facet of the state and transnational organized criminality of citizens from different countries whose activities, not only in the galamsey but for the purposes of today, it’s galamsey and the way it’s polluting waters, is posing an existential threat to Ghana, raising tensions between Ghana and Cote D’Ivoire.

“But even more disturbingly, the monies that are accrued from these activities are placing our international reputation at risk because it contributes to illicit financial flows and the funding of violent extremist activities elsewhere,” he said.

According to Prof. Aning, the country’s failure to combat galamsey activities is a disgrace.

He further alleged that there is a possibility of some state officials being involved in or facilitating the activities of illegal miners, referencing the Aisha Huang case as an example.

“For every state where its leaders either collude, are incapable, or unwilling to use the power that they have been given in trust for generations yet unborn and deliberately allow others to come in from other countries to do what is happening, it is not only shameful but a disgrace.

"Because the heavy equipment, if I want to disaggregate those who are involved, somebody gives visas to the Chinese to come here, and the Aisha Huang case was very clear about the levels of state incompetence and the levels of state collusion.

“Nobody knew whether she had left this country, nobody knew when she had come back, nobody could dismantle her network, and we stood on the sidelines, and as one of my panelists said, just talk,” he added.

He maintained that while the involvement of Ghanaians in the illegal mining business may have been small initially, it can no longer be classified as merely illicit small-scale mining, given the scale of investments involved.

“… I like the statement the Chinese ambassador made a couple of years ago that ‘stop talking about China because who gives them the visa to come to this country.’ Every embassy in Ghana has an intelligence officer there to assess the visa application.

"So, we need to put a mirror in front of us, and then we need to tickle ourselves and laugh because we are just not doing what we are paid with the taxpayer’s money to do. So right now, if you look at the levels of investment in the galamsey, the Ghanaian component of that investment is very small. It’s moved from illicit small-scale to something else,” he said.

MAG/AE