Galamsey fight is a shared responsibility – Mireku Duker to government communicators

The Deputy Minister for Lands and Natural Resources in charge of Mines, Mr. George Mireku Duker has stated that the government’s aggressive drive to eradicate illegal small-scale mining (Galamsey) will fail if all stakeholders, including ordinary Ghanaians, do not play their part in the fight.

He maintained that combating illegal mining is a shared duty that requires the active engagement of all Ghanaians.

The Deputy Minister made this statement during an engagement with the media practitioners and government communicators in the Ashanti Region on Tuesday.

The forum in Kumasi was aimed at getting media and government communicators up to speed on the government’s progress in the fight and educating them on the critical role they can play in the fight.

He reminded the trained communicators of their position as liaisons between the government and the citizens, instructing them to preach the government’s laudable and instructive efforts and successes while also criticizing when required.

He elaborated on the government’s participation in the struggle to alleviate the situation in which the Ministry is primarily blamed for the ineffectiveness of various state institutions.

He, therefore, presented an extended and comprehensive presentation on the fight against illegal mining beginning in early 2017.

The Deputy Minister’s incisive presentation highlighted some of the government’s actions to clean up the small-scale mining sector as consultative talks, the designation of red zones, the digitization of small-scale mining permits, the commissioning of mercury-free machinery, the procurement of speedboats, the activation of the Community Mining Plan, and the employment of river wardens.

Mr. Mireku Duker highlighted that the government’s primary responsibility is to develop and implement policies to achieve the sector’s objectives.

He reasoned that the Ministry as well as other affiliated agencies had done an excellent job of facilitating the effective and smooth functioning of security agencies participating in the fight against illegal mining.

He urged communicators to furnish the public with accurate and true information.