Lecturer and New Patriotic Party (NPP) member Ishaq Ibrahim has accused the National Democratic Congress (NDC) of framing the galamsey problem as solely the responsibility of former President Nana Akufo-Addo while in opposition.
According to him, after the NDC did that, they still haven’t professed a real solution to end the galamsey menace.
His comments come after the government revoked Legislative Instrument (L.I) 2462, which previously granted the President authority to approve mining activities in forest reserves.
The move, formalised through the Environmental Protection (Mining in Forest Reserves) Revocation Instrument, 2025, became law on Wednesday, December 10, 2025, following its laying in Parliament by the Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah.
While civil society organisations have praised the government’s decision as a bold step toward protecting forest reserves, Mr Ibrahim stressed that merely revoking the L.I. is not enough to eliminate illegal mining activities.
Speaking on The Big Issue on Channel One TV on Saturday, December 20, 2025, he said the NDC politicised galamsey to portray themselves as the solution.
“I am not sure what informed the decision to introduce the LI in Parliament. But what I am particularly sure is that in November 2024, the NDC packaged the galamsey problem as an Akufo-Addo problem and that they were a solution, and they were the solution to that problem. All we needed to do was to trust them,” he said.
Mr Ibrahim also criticised organized labour for pressuring the former president, demanding measures such as the declaration of a state of emergency on galamsey.
He added, “Elsewhere, I have referred to them as con people when it comes to galamsey. Everything they were saying then, they did not mean it.”
The lecturer’s comments highlight ongoing debates over accountability and action on illegal mining in the country, even as the government moves to strengthen environmental protections.
Govt revokes L.I. 2462, bans mining in forest reserves