'I haven't seen any fight against galamsey' - Joe Wise

Former Member of Parliament for Bekwai, Joseph Osei-Owusu, has expressed disappointment over what he described as the absence of a genuine fight against illegal mining, popularly known as “galamsey”.

Speaking in a video posted by GHOne TV on X on October 21, 2025, Osei-Owusu said he has yet to see any concrete action being taken to curb the menace.

“So far, I haven’t seen any fight. My constituency is one of the busiest in terms of ‘galamsey’. My own personal cocoa farm I visited there about two weeks ago, and I’ve never seen as much devastation before,” he said.

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According to him, the level of destruction caused by illegal miners has worsened over the past year.

“The last time I was there was about a year ago, and when I went back recently, it had quadrupled. Every space along the route is mined. I don’t see any, absolutely no activity of anybody preventing or stopping anybody,” he lamented.

Osei-Owusu said the situation on the ground contradicts public claims that government is actively tackling illegal mining.

“Absolutely nothing is happening, at least in the areas where I am. Sometimes I find it funny for those of us sitting and theorising. I think they should go into the ground, visit the places,” he added.

Watch the video below

So far I haven't seen any fight against galamsey... - Joseph Osei-Owusu (Former MP, Bekwai)#GHOneNews #EIBNetwork#GHOneTV #NewsAlert pic.twitter.com/1ASc5Nfjtn

— GHOne TV (@ghonetv) October 21, 2025