The Minister of Education, Haruna Iddrisu, has called for stringent penalties for public officials and politicians implicated in illegal mining (galamsey), emphasising that tough sanctions were vital to deterring the practice.
Speaking on Channel One TV’s The Point of View with Bernard Avle, which was monitored by Ghanaianradar.com, he urged the courts to show no leniency to any public official found guilty of galamsey, saying it would serve as a warning to others.
“We need punitive action. I think that any public officer or political office holder associated with the menace of galamsey must be punished decisively. If the courts get the opportunity to get any public office holder engaged in galamsey, they should deal ruthlessly with that person so that it becomes a deterrent,” he stated. Iddrisu highlighted that recent crackdowns have yielded positive results, pointing to a rise in seized excavators and arrests, outpacing previous efforts.
The Minister attributed the progress to robust enforcement and decisive judicial action, stressing that these measures are crucial to winning the fight against galamsey and preserving Ghana’s environment and natural resources.
