'Shoot-to-kill anti-galamsey move bad' - A.B.A Fuseini

A.B.A Fuseini, Member of Parliament for Sagnarigu, has disagreed with fellow lawmaker Joseph Osei-Owusu that a shoot-to-kill fatua against illegal miners (galamseyers) will solve the problem.

According to him, such a policy will result in the killing of innocent people.

The First Deputy Speaker made the “extreme” suggestion on the floor of parliament on Tuesday, during a debate about the recent burning of 14 tipper trucks and an excavator in Kumbungu by the Operation Vanguard personnel as part of measures to stop them from sand winning.

“Extreme behaviour must be met with an extreme response. We are dealing with people who are determined at every point to make their money without regards what they are doing to the environment,” Mr Osei-Owusu said on the floor.

Kumbungu MP, Ras Mubarak, who raised the issue on the floor, condemned the burning. The Minority caucus has also demanded that the owners of the heavy-duty vehicles be compensated.

Reacting to the shoot-to-kill proposal in an interview with Obeng Mensah, sit-in-host of Ghana Yensom on Accra100.5FM on Wednesday, 14 March, Mr Fuseini said: “We all support the fight against galamsey but shoot-to-kill policy will be a terrible thing to do. I disagree with the Honourable Member for making this claim.

“We need measures that are well thought-through, measures that will really help, not shoot-to-kill people. You are going to be on a murder spree and kill innocent people just anyhow if you adopt that policy.”



He added: “It has been established that many innocent people have died in countries that adopted shoot-to-kill policy, and, so, it is not the best.”