Galamsey is more than politics, lets deal with it before it's too late

The battle for the leadership of Ghana in the 2024 election looked set to be fought on the areas of economy and corruption until a Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL) statement in the last week of August drew the nation's attention and ire to the danger that illegal mining, popularly known as galamsey, poses.

The GWCL statement on August 30 stated that the company was unable to supply water to certain parts of Cape Coast due to the pollution of its water sources by galamsey activities.

While that was not the first time the GWCL had referenced galamsey as a danger to their ability to effectively discharge their duties of supplying water to Ghanaians, the statement became a stimulating factor for most Ghanaians, civil society, and religious organizations to pump some new fire into the anti-galamsey fight and deal with the issue once and for all.

I have observed with keen interest the demonstration by the Democracy Hub people and the events thereafter, which include their arrests and prosecution. I have also taken notice of the public statements by politicians from both sides of the political divide, and I must say that it is quite disappointing.

Before I state my reasons for the disappointment, I’d like to express my acknowledgment of the contributions of illegal mining to our economy. According to the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources, the small-scale mining sector alone employs over one million Ghanaians. This figure is ten times more than what the large-scale mining sector engages.

I’m also not unaware of the contribution of gold from the small-scale mining sector to the country’s revenue generation drive, especially in the face of the gold-for-oil drive.

The nature of Ghanaian society, particularly the situation in the mining communities, makes it delicate to proscribe small-scale mining/galamsey entirely, but there comes a time when I believe as a nation we have to decide between “choosing champagne for a few or safe drinking water for all.” Credit to Thomas Sankara for the quote.

Our inability to deal with the galamsey situation effectively has spiraled the situation out of control to the extent that it is now not an existential threat to just a few people in the Western, Eastern, Ashanti, and Bono Regions but literally the entire country.

Our water bodies have been destroyed to the level where we are being warned by credible international bodies that the country will most likely import water if activities of illegal mining are not nipped in the bud.

Beyond the destruction of water sources, the galamsey menace threatens the food we eat. It was reported recently that foodstuffs from Ghana which were exported to the US were found to contain heavy metals which are not good for the human system. Mind you, those of us here in the country are eating these foodstuffs on a daily basis.

Already we are feeling the impact. I watched the interview of the pathologist and researcher at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Prof. Dr. Paul Osei Sampene, on Channel One TV (formerly Citi TV), who confirmed that the rising cases of babies born with defects are directly linked to the intake of water and food heavily polluted by galamsey activities. The issue of terminal ailments like kidney diseases, etc., are all linked with galamsey.

So this is the danger staring us in the face, and instead of confronting it head-on, all I keep hearing is the trading of blame by politicians across the divides.

The impact of galamsey knows no party color, and while some politicians may be able to afford imported water, we need to ask ourselves how many Ghanaians can survive on imported water sustainably.

The government may feel that a complete onslaught on galamsey may impact them in the 2024 elections, but I believe President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo can tackle this menace effectively and make it his legacy, just like Free SHS.