The President of the National Association of Graduate Teachers (NAGRAT), Angel Carbonu, has called on the government to demonstrate greater commitment to the fight against illegal mining, commonly known as galamsey.
This comes as organised labour prepares to embark on a nationwide strike on Thursday, October 10, demanding stricter measures to combat galamsey, including a ban on all mining activities in forest reserves.
Despite President Akufo-Addo’s plea on October 3 to reconsider the strike, Organised labour has confirmed that the industrial action will proceed, citing the government’s failure to provide concrete assurances.
Speaking in an interview on Adom FM’s morning show, Dwaso Nsem on Tuesday, Mr Carbonu urged the government to act swiftly to regulate the mining industry and safeguard the environment.
“The government should not wait for parliament to reconvene before taking action on galamsey; they should act now. The strike will go on since the government has refused to give concrete assurance on how it will solve the illegal mining menace.
“The government should declare a state of emergency in mining areas, and small-scale mining activities should be suspended for a while to allow the government to raise modalities to be able to regulate the industry properly.
“We want the government to show commitment to fighting galamsey; we want them to show that they care. By now, people involved are supposed to be arrested. Since we announced plans for the strike, there has not been any sign of commitment from the government to solve the menace,” he said.
Watch the video below:
Source: Adomonline
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