President John Dramani Mahama has admitted that illegal mining (galamsey) involves actors across all levels of Ghanaian society, including traditional rulers, political appointees, and members of his own network.
President Mahama acknowledged that some members of the National Democratic Congress (NDC) are involved in or conniving with illegal miners.
He noted the practice has “eaten into the fabric” of society, involving traditional authorities and political appointees who often shift allegiances between governments to protect their operations.
Despite these admissions, he reaffirmed that no appointee would be shielded.
He said low producer prices have led some cocoa farmers to abandon their farms for gold mining and the government is introducing a pricing mechanism to ensure farmers receive 70% of global prices to discourage this shift.
President Mahama reiterated that the lack of patrol equipment, such as boats for monitoring waterways and forest reserves is also hindering the fight with anti-galamsey task forces (NAIMOS) often facing physical resistance from local chiefs and youth within mining communities.
