NPP UK Bristol chapter declares galamsey a national emergency

The New Patriotic Party (NPP) UK Bristol Chapter has described illegal mining, popularly known as galamsey, as a national emergency that threatens Ghana’s environment, health and future.

The group is calling on government to take immediate, coordinated action to halt the destruction of the country’s water bodies and farmlands.

Addressing a press conference themed “Galamsey as a National Emergency: A Diaspora Call to Conscience”, the Chapter’s Communications Officer, Michael Ampadu, said illegal mining was “destroying Ghana’s land, water and future,” yet too many people remained silent.

He described the situation as a full-blown crisis, noting that rivers such as the Pra, Ankobra and Offin, once clean and teeming with life, are now polluted and dangerous.

According to him, Ghana Water Company’s proposed 280 percent increase in tariffs to make water safe for consumption underscores the severity of the problem.

“This is not about politics; it is about our health,” he stressed.

Ampadu criticised the lack of coordination among state institutions tasked with addressing the menace, saying that despite the alarm being raised by farmers, teachers, chiefs, students, and civil society, those in charge were not working together and no one was being held accountable.

He cited the efforts of organisations such as the Peasant Farmers Association, the University Teachers Association of Ghana (UTAG), the Ghana Bar Association and the Catholic Bishops’ Conference, which have all called on government to declare a state of emergency in areas affected by galamsey.

He described their warnings as legitimate, noting that the ongoing destruction is equivalent to environmental terrorism.

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He further revealed that even the National Security Council had advised urgent intervention, yet the President had not declared an emergency.

Offering a diaspora perspective, Ampadu said Ghanaians living abroad have seen better environmental management practices and are disheartened by the situation back home.

He contrasted Ghana’s natural rivers with the man-made rivers in the United Kingdom, which are clean, protected, and used for recreation and tourism.

“In Ghana, we have natural rivers, gifts from God, but we are destroying them because of galamsey,” he said.

“Our leaders have travelled; they know what good leadership looks like. The question is not whether they know better, but why they are not doing better.”

He emphasised that members of the Ghanaian diaspora are closely watching events in Ghana and will continue to speak up against the destruction of the environment.

He argued that agencies already have data on the ownership of concessions and that publishing information on sites visited by the National Anti-Illegal Mining Operations Secretariat (NAIMOS) and their ownership would compel stakeholders to act responsibly.

He also called for introspection within NAIMOS, alleging that some insiders with links to illegal miner's leak information ahead of operations, allowing perpetrators to evade capture.

He proposed that any excavator found parked in a mining area should be impounded to trace its operators, since they are likely to return once enforcement teams leave.

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