Nana Adjei Kyerema challenges MP on galamsey and past accountability

The 2024 Independent Parliamentary Candidate for Atiwa East Constituency in the Eastern Region, Nana Adjei Kyerema, has responded to the Member of Parliament (MP) for the Atiwa East Constituency in the Eastern Region, Abena Osei-Asare, over her disingenuous criticism of the current government's approach to fighting illegal mining (galamsey).

Osei-Asare, who served in the New Patriotic Party administration as the former Deputy Finance Minister in charge of Revenue, made headlines during the debate of the 2025 budget in Parliament when she referred to the government's fight against the illegal menace as "plastic chair approach to the galamsey fight."

This analogy was used to imply the government's approach lacked serious financing and robust measures.

The outspoken politician questioned the MP and the government at the time's track record and suggested it was hypocritical for her to criticize the current government's efforts now.

The public debate reflects ongoing political discourse in Ghana regarding the most effective strategies to combat galamsey, which has caused extensive environmental destruction in the country.

Nana Adjei Kyerema's statement, "CALLING OUT INCONSISTENCY AND DEMANDING ACCOUNTABILITY," criticised Abena Osei-Asare for her comments on the national fight against galamsey (illegal mining), contrasting her public stance today to her role as a key member in the erstwhile government's handling of the issue.

The core of Kyerema's argument is that Osei-Asare, a former Deputy Finance Minister under the past government, lacks the moral standing to criticise the current administration's efforts against galamsey, given her previous government's perceived failures in addressing the issue.

Nana Adjei Kyerema noted that the MP for Atiwa East has recently spoken forcefully about the national fight against galamsey as captured by many national news outlets, an attempt to sway the attention of the public from her own handling of the issue she superintended over for 12 years, and particularly the 8 years she served as a key and influential member of the past government.

Nana Adjei Kyerema was of the view that the MP concerns may sound timely, but they cannot be taken at face value without examining the context in which they are being made.

According to him, when leaders comment on matters they oversaw for years, their constituents and Ghanaians at large deserve clarity, not selective recollection.

He noted that Abena Osei Asare has represented Atiwa East for more than twelve years, stressing that the eight of those years, her party controlled the national executive.

Nana Adjei Kyerema argued that during the same period, she also served as Deputy Minister of Finance for two terms and played a central role in budget preparation throughout the last administration.

He mentioned that these years coincide with the period in which most constituencies, including Atiwa East, suffered some of the worst environmental destruction in their history.

Nana Adjei Kyerema asserted that the galamsey devastation unfolded directly under her leadership as MP and during her tenure as a senior member of the team responsible for financing the national fight against galamsey.

He stressed that "It is therefore difficult to accept her recent posture as though she did not influence the actions and inactions that brought her constituency and the country to this point."

Nana Adjei Kyerema pointed out that "As Deputy Minister of Finance, she had both the opportunity and the authority to push for the very national budgetary prioritisation she now demands".

He added that as MP she also had the platform to champion decisive local interventions to protect Atiwa East, noting that, "Yet residents witnessed a steady decline of forest cover, polluted water bodies and expanding mining pits."

"Today, the scars are visible even from the Accra to Kumasi highway. This deterioration did not happen overnight, and it certainly did not happen without years of public concern, media coverage, and repeated appeals from communities across the constituency."

"Towns such as Anyinam and Asaman Tamfoe in particular consistently warned of the growing destruction. Their protests were captured by national media, and their petitions were formally submitted to district authorities. Their appeals were clear and persistent, yet the deterioration continued almost unchecked," Nana Adjei Kyerema explained.

Against this background, her sudden criticism of current budget allocations to the frontline agencies fighting galamsey sits in sharp contrast to the missed opportunities during the period when her voice and authority carried the most weight.

Given this history, her remarks raise an important question.

How can someone who held influence in both the executive and the legislature throughout the crisis now speak as though the problem emerged only after she left the executive?

Leadership requires more than commentary.

It requires accountability.

When a constituency suffers this level of devastation during a leader’s tenure, that leader cannot simply reposition themselves as an advocate for those affected without addressing their own record.

Her statements also reinforce a growing frustration among Ghanaians.

Many see a pattern in which some politicians denounce problems only after they have failed to address them while in government.

This pattern erodes public trust, undermines credibility, and strengthens the perception that political positions are too often shaped by convenience rather than conviction.

Nana Adjei Kyerema stressed that "If the MP wishes to contribute constructively to the galamsey discourse, she must first provide a transparent account of what actions she took to protect Atiwa East during her tenure."

He stressed that the female MP must explain what interventions she supported, what outcomes they delivered, why those outcomes failed to halt the decline, and what efforts she made within the Ministry of Finance to secure adequate resources for the institutions responsible for combating galamsey.

Nana Adjei Kyerema was of the view that without that clarity, Atiwa East MP's current criticisms appear disconnected from the reality Ghanaians witnessed.

He pointed out that they may reasonably be interpreted as an attempt to influence public perception rather than confront the substance of the issue.

Nana Adjei Kyerema said Atiwa East and Ghana deserve leadership that stands up when it matters, not only when it is politically convenient.

According to him, the environmental destruction of the past decade demands honesty, responsibility, and a firm commitment to ensuring that the mistakes of the past are not repeated.

Nana Adjei Kyerema reaffirmed their position to continue to insist on accountability and push for the transformational leadership that the people of Atiwa East and Ghana as a whole have long been denied.