Ing. Dr. Kenneth Ashigbey, Convener of the Media Coalition Against Galamsey has urged journalists to ensure that major presidential candidates, MPs, and parliamentary candidates make a firm commitment to the government’s latest promises to combat galamsey.
Specifically, he’s calling on Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and John Dramani Mahama of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) to take a strong stance against illegal mining.
This plea comes after Organised Labour suspended its industrial action, initially set for October 10, due to government plans to address the galamsey menace.
Dr. Ashigbey made this appeal during an interview with Bernard Avle on Channel One TV‘s The Point of View on Wednesday, October 9.
Ing. Dr Kenneth Ashigbey emphasized that the 2024 general elections in Ghana are a toss-up between Dr Bawumia and Mr Mahama, urging journalists to prioritize continuity by pushing this agenda, ensuring the two candidates agree to the President’s promises.
Dr. Ashigbey also stressed the importance of journalists tracking and reporting on President Akufo-Addo’s latest plans to combat galamsey, which has devastated Ghana’s water bodies and forests.
“Another important thing that we [media] need to start doing, is that these parliamentary candidates in these communities, we need to make sure that these minimum things that government has said, they are also signed onto it, all of them, including the current members of parliament, and also the presidential candidates, especially of the NDC and NPP, they need to sign onto it.
“Because post January 7, 2025, one of them will be president and it has to continue, so, as we push, and we should push for additional things to be done.
“A lot more timelines must be put on the things that have been said that are going to be done and also demand reports… It’s important we keep doing that.”
