Awula Serwaa, Executive Director of ECO-Conscious Citizens, has urged the government to empower security forces to take decisive action against illegal mining activities that have ravaged Ghana’s forest reserves and water bodies.
Speaking on Prime News on ABC News GH, she emphasized that security agencies should be provided with the necessary resources to remove illegal miners from affected areas.
According to her, the country’s security forces are well-trained and capable of handling the situation, but they need the full backing of the government.
“Our security is well-armed to fight this as well,” she said, insisting that authorities should no longer tolerate the destruction caused by illegal miners.
She called for swift intervention to dismantle the operations of illegal miners, who have taken over forest reserves with impunity.
Serwaa proposed that the government declare a state of emergency in highly affected areas to allow security forces to act without bureaucratic delays.
She also urged policymakers to introduce stringent measures to prevent further encroachment into protected lands.
Revoking Legislative Instrument (L.I.) 2462, she argued, could be one of the necessary steps to strengthen enforcement.
She reiterated the long-term consequences of illegal mining, warning that the continued destruction of forests and water bodies will have devastating effects on Ghana’s economy, food security, and public health.
“Not just our water is being poisoned, our food is being poisoned,” she stressed, calling for sustained action to safeguard the country’s natural resources for future generations.
