Member of Parliament for Manhyia South, Nana Agyei Baffour Awuah, has launched a strong critique of the government’s efforts to combat illegal mining, arguing that there is little evidence to suggest the fight against galamsey is yielding meaningful results.
Speaking on JoyNews on May 25, 2026, the New Patriotic Party (NPP) lawmaker questioned claims that significant progress is being made, pointing instead to the continued pollution of rivers and water bodies across the country.
“There’s no fight. Where is the fight?” he asked.
According to Awuah, the success of any anti-galamsey campaign should be judged by visible improvements on the ground rather than declarations by public officials.
“You see, I have a Nigerian client who once jokingly told me, ‘I don’t reward effort. I reward results.’ Where are the results?” he stated.
The MP said the condition of Ghana’s rivers remains a clear indication that illegal mining continues to wreak havoc on the environment despite ongoing interventions.
“If the National Anti-Illegal Mining Operations Secretariat (NAIMOS) is doing well, our water bodies should be impacted by now. The water bodies are there for everyone to see. They are coloured water bodies, heavily coloured water bodies,” he said.
Awuah also appealed to the media to intensify its watchdog role by helping citizens assess the effectiveness of government actions and exposing realities on the ground.
“There are things that I believe that very respectfully the media, as the fourth estate of the realm, should be able to help regulate by way of pointing us to the right or the truth,” he said.
“So that everybody will see who is doing well, who is not doing well, and then nobody will pull a yarn through our eyes and take advantage of it,” he stated.
The lawmaker defended the anti-galamsey record of former President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo and former Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia, insisting that their administration took some of the toughest measures against illegal mining in recent years.
“Look, you may dislike Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, but I don’t think that in recent history any government has fought galamsey as Nana Addo did,” he stated.
As evidence, Awuah pointed to the nationwide ban on small-scale mining imposed under the Akufo-Addo administration, describing it as a bold step aimed at restoring degraded lands and polluted rivers.
“It is not a matter of dispute that there was a ban on mining activities in this country,” he said.
He added that the government introduced several reforms during the period to encourage sustainable and environmentally responsible mining practices.
“Policies were fashioned out to ensure responsible mining,” he explained.
While condemning illegal mining, Awuah stressed that mining itself remains a vital pillar of Ghana’s economy and should be managed rather than discouraged.
“Mining is very critical to our economy,” he stated.
“In fact, if you read from experts, particularly when it comes to mining governance, our key as a nation out of poverty is mining,” he explained.
He argued that stronger regulatory structures are needed to ensure Ghana derives greater benefits from its mineral wealth, especially as foreign-owned mining firms often repatriate profits abroad.
“We need to make sure that we have a lot of governance in that sector because when you are foreigners, they repatriate their funds out of the country,” he said.
The Manhyia South MP called for a balanced approach that protects the environment while allowing the mining sector to contribute to economic growth and job creation.
“We need to sit down and find a way to ensure that people mine responsibly because we need people to also mine to grow our economy,” he said.
“In my humble view, that is what God has given us to grow as a people. We should do it in a manner that doesn’t affect our lives because the environment is life,” he added.
Awuah acknowledged that the Akufo-Addo-Bawumia administration faced challenges in its fight against galamsey but maintained that its achievements have often been overlooked.
“Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo and the Dr Bawumia administration did a lot,” he said.
“However, there were some shortfalls, and those shortfalls were blown to cover the good deeds that they had done in the industry.”
He further argued that public dissatisfaction with those shortcomings created an opportunity for the National Democratic Congress (NDC) to capitalise politically and return to power.
“Rather than sitting down, identifying the shortfalls and encouraging the government to address those shortfalls, we made it seem as though the government had done nothing and the NDC took advantage of it and came into office,” he said.
NA/VPO
