Govt Must Stop Burning Galamsey Excavators Because It Cannot Win The Fight - Founder of Omanbapa Foundation Declares
The Founder of Omanbapa Foundation, a Kumasi-based employment agency, Mr Ernest Yaw Dankwah, has noted that the government must give some skill training to the youth before driving them away from illegal mining activities because they are already adddicted to the process.
The Founder of Omanbapa Foundation, a Kumasi-based employment agency, Mr Ernest Yaw Dankwah has denied a widespread media report attributed him that President Nana Addo Dankwa Addo-Addo must equally deal with the various state appointees and politicians who are behind the illegal small scale mining activities, popularly known as galamsey operations before fighting the young ones who were engaged by those politicians to carry out these illicit activities.
According to him, the media reports had misquoted what he really said in the recent interview he granted with the journalists who came to him some days ago and subsequently asked him about his position in the fight against the illegal small scale mining whose activities have destroyed the water bodies, forest reserves and environment.
Giving the details of what he said when granting an interview with the journalists, Dankwah further clarified that he said the government will not win the fight against galamsey and it must stop allowing the soldiers to burn equipment or excavators seized from the illegal small scale miners.
Speaking in an interview via telephone number with Soireenews to correct the media report, Mr Dankwah noted that what he said during the interview was that the government of President Dankwa Addo-Addo will never succeed in the fight against the galamsey menace if there were not corrective measures to give the youths who are engaged in the practice an effective skill training.
"The reasons why I am saying these were that there should be a replacement for the activities of the illegal small scale mining work.
This, according to him, was because these youths are addicted to this work.
He argued that the recent adoption of the practice by the government to use the armed soldiers from the Ghana Army Force (GFA) to be killing and harassing the galamseyers will not solve the problem.
He asserted that the government can easily solve the problem if it calls on the leadership of the galamseyers to tell them about the consequences of their activities.
"I think that the government must call upon the galamseyers to tell them the good plans it has for them, And l think by using these approaches then the government can resolve the problem.
"If the government of President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo doesn't have any plans for galamseyers it will be difficult for it to fight against these people," Mr Dankwah who is the Human Resources management expert noted.
According to him, it was clear evidence that these young ones who are engaging in galamsey operations generally does so because there is no job in the system.
He noted that the government must give some skill training to them before driving them into the system.
"I think the government must give these young galamsey operators some skill training so that they can even be employed as community police or sanitary inspectors. And if these measures were taken, it will even prevent them from going back to do the Illegal activities," Mr Dankwah suggested.
He emphasized that the fight against illegal mining activities can be successful if the government is able to put all these ideas together and implement them.
Freeman Koryekpor Awlesu Greater Accra Regional Correspondent