President of the Concerned Small Scale Miners Association, Michael Kwadwo Peprah, has asked former Lands Minister Samuel Abu Jinapor to refrain from commenting on illegal mining, popularly known as galamsey.
Mr. Peprah criticized Mr. Jinapor’s tenure, describing him as one of the worst ministers in Ghana’s history and claiming he made no significant progress in tackling the issue.
Speaking on Adom FM’s Dwaso Nsem, he praised the current Lands Minister for engaging stakeholders, contrasting this with Mr. Jinapor’s alleged failure to involve small-scale miners.
“We would applaud the current Minister in the sense that there has been an extensive engagement, and if it continues that way, we will get somewhere. It seems he has seen the mistakes of past ministers. Someone like Abu Jinapor never engaged us, and even when you go to his office, his door was never opened for you. He is one of the worst ministers we’ve ever had,” he stated.
Mr. Peprah’s comments follow remarks by the Damongo MP in Parliament, where he stressed the need to involve politically exposed persons in addressing galamsey.
However, Mr. Peprah strongly disagreed, arguing that politicians are not the best people to lead the fight against illegal mining. Instead, he emphasized the need for direct involvement of miners and local communities.
“We must bear in mind that we can’t fight galamsey 100% because it evolves, but sometimes when you put the politicians in charge, they become like a tin god. We are on the field, facing the problems and knowing the reality. But when it comes to solutions, we rely on doctors and professors who only know the theoretical, not the practical aspect,” he added.
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