The Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, has declared that he would ‘rather die’ with his integrity intact than be corrupted in the fight against illegal mining, popularly known as galamsey.
He said he remained resolute in the government’s efforts to clamp down on illegal mining and would not compromise his principles despite the powerful interests behind the illicit activity.
“I would choose to fight with integrity and die than being corrupted in this dangerous work that will destroy all of us. And that is the pledge we have for the people of Ghana,” he declared.
Mr Armah-Kofi Buah made the remarks on Thursday after undertaking a 16-kilometre journey along the Ankobra River as part of a working visit to illegal mining sites in the Western Region. He assured Ghanaians that the government would not relent in its efforts to protect the country’s water bodies and natural resources.
“We are going to continue on. We will not waver, we will not stop,” he said.
Sponsors, financiers targeted
The Minister said the government had destroyed and seized thousands of illegal mining machines but stressed that the next phase of the operation would focus increasingly on identifying the powerful sponsors and financiers behind the activities.
“The machines we’ve destroyed, the excavators we’ve seized—those behind them are powerful forces that are hiding in the dark. And our next phase is continuing to fish them out.”
He added: “We are going to continue to fight all the way—those sponsors, those financiers—until we win this fight.”
Nearly 3,000 machines cleared
According to the Minister, close to 3,000 changfan machines have so far been cleared from the Ankobra, Offin and other river bodies, while more than 237 arrests have been made.
He said 144 of those arrested were foreign nationals.
Mr Armah-Kofi Buah said the figures demonstrated a significant shift in the government’s approach to the fight against illegal mining, from sporadic raids to permanent, intelligence-led operations.
“It clearly shows that we are turning the corner. We are using more intelligence-led operations. We are being very intentional about these operations, and the results are showing.”
Ankobra cleared of changfan machines
The Minister expressed satisfaction with the progress made along the Ankobra River, recalling that the water body was previously heavily occupied by changfan machines and other makeshift mining equipment.
“If you had actually visited the Ankobra in the last one year, where the whole river was basically a workshop where changfan machines were being manufactured left and right and were all over the river body… But today, I can tell you that through all the mileage we’ve covered, the Ankobra is completely cleared of changfan machines, cleared of other makeshift equipment.”
He acknowledged that more work remained to be done to restore the river fully but said the removal of illegal miners and their equipment represented substantial progress.
“We have not gotten to that point where we want to see the river blue, but I think we’ve made great progress in clearing all the changfan machines and the thugs that were wielding guns—they are all gone.”
The Minister commended the National Anti-Illegal Mining Operations Secretariat (NAIMOS), the Navy Special Forces and other security personnel for their efforts under Operation Water Shield.
He also disclosed that President John Dramani Mahama was closely interested in the operations and remained committed to their success.
“The President has told me to inform you that he is very, very interested in what you are doing, and he is rooting for us to succeed.”
Mr Armah-Kofi Buah further said the government was encouraged by the number of young people who had moved away from illegal mining into cooperative and small-scale mining programmes.
He said the government was providing training and capacity-building to help young people mine gold responsibly without destroying water bodies and forests.
“You can look for gold without destroying our water bodies and our forests. You can look for the gold without damaging our environment. You can look for gold responsibly and sustainably.”
He maintained that although the government had more work to do, the transformation of the Ankobra was evidence that the fight against illegal mining was yielding results.
“Today, what I’ve seen… Ankobra is very clear and smooth, and we can sail without any obstruction. It is clear we are winning this fight.”
He, however, cautioned that the road ahead remained difficult and required continued commitment and integrity.
“The road ahead is not easy. It also requires us to rededicate ourselves to fight this fight with integrity,” he concluded.
