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Independent presidential candidate Alan Kwadwo Kyerematen has announced a bold 10-point blueprint aimed at tackling illegal mining (galamsey), a major environmental and socio-economic issue in Ghana. Speaking at a press conference at the Ghana International Press Centre on Sunday, September 29, 2024, Kyerematen criticized both the New Patriotic Party (NPP) and the National Democratic Congress (NDC) for their longstanding failure to resolve the crisis.
His Great Transformational Plan (GTP) includes a one-year nationwide ban on all small-scale and community mining activities—whether legal or illegal. The blueprint proposes demobilizing mining machinery, rehabilitating degraded lands and rivers, and conducting a thorough audit of mining licenses issued over the past 15 years. It also emphasizes providing alternative employment opportunities for communities impacted by the ban.
Kyerematen stated that Ghana’s natural resources can only be protected through bold and decisive action. He underscored that the youth should not be blamed for engaging in illegal mining, as they are often left with no alternative livelihoods. His plan includes job creation initiatives aimed at addressing these underlying socio-economic issues.
“The youth are not criminals; they are fighting for the future of Ghana,” he emphasized, calling for leadership that prioritizes both environmental protection and sustainable development.
In a related issue, Kyerematen strongly condemned the recent arrest and prosecution of protesters involved in the Democracy Hub street demonstrations against galamsey. The protesters were charged with “unlawful assembly” and remanded for two weeks, despite the police allowing the protest to continue for three days. Kyerematen criticized the judiciary’s denial of bail, calling it an abuse of judicial discretion, and urged the Attorney General to drop the charges.
He argued that the protesters were only exercising their constitutional right to speak out against the government’s failure to curb illegal mining, and that the real criminals are those in power who have allowed the crisis to persist.
