Franklin Cudjoe, president of IMANI Africa, has criticized President Nana Akufo-Addo’s commitment to fighting illegal mining, known as ‘galamsey,’ calling it pretentious and adding that the President is ‘hopelessly asleep.’
Despite the government’s focus on combating illegal mining for years, little success has been recorded. Recent data indicates that about 60% of the country’s water bodies have been destroyed due to galamsey. Farmlands and forest reserves have also been severely affected by these activities.
Institutions such as the Ghana Water Company Limited and the Ghana Medical Association have expressed concern about the impact of illegal mining.
In expressing his disappointment over the President’s failure to tackle the issue, despite putting his presidency on the line, the IMANI president said, “Two years ago, my great friend now turned public enemy official 1, Nana Addo, wasn’t sure Aisha Huang, the Chinese galamsey queen, had been deported. I believed he had been seeing Aisha Huang’s lookalike in town, so he wasn’t sure she was deported. Pardon him. Once upon a time, I, too, couldn’t tell the distinguishable features of pretty slender Caucasian ladies”.
Mr. Cudjoe further hinted at the government’s involvement in environmental destruction, stating that Ghanaians recognize when politicians pretend to be addressing a problem.
In a Facebook post, he stated that “a few months ago, a judge demanded proof that two Chinese illegal miners arrested and in police custody had died and their bodies cremated. See, you and I can tell when when a political leader such as NADAA is pretending to be in charge of fighting illegal mining when he is hopelessly asleep.”
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