Fighting galamsey needs chiefs’ power, not just laws – Sir Sam Jonah
The Chancellor of the University of Cape Coast, Sir Sam Jonah, has called on the government to give room for the decisions of chiefs and community leaders in the granting of mining rights.
According to him, the chiefs and their communities bear the consequences of illegal mining and thus should directly participate in decisions that had the potential to affect their environment.
He therefore, called for the active involvement of traditional leaders and local communities in Ghana’s fight against illegal mining, popularly known as “galamsey.”
Speaking during a fireside chat with students of Wisconsin University in Accra Wednesday, Sir Jonah said when leaders partake in decision-making, they would acknowledge full responsibility for the fight against illegal mining.
“No traditional leader wants to see rivers polluted and forests destroyed without having the authority to intervene,” he stressed, explaining that granting licences in Accra without consulting chiefs leaves no one in control of activities on the ground.
According to him, Ghana’s mining laws were sufficient but poorly enforced, largely because traditional leaders and local communities have been sidelined.
“It is not that we lack laws. The laws are clear. What is missing is proper enforcement and the active involvement of traditional leaders,” he noted.
Sir Jonah also pointed to the socio-economic pressures driving illegal mining, revealing that about five million Ghanaians were engaged in small-scale mining due to limited job opportunities.
With gold selling for thousands of dollars per ounce, he said the temptation was hard to resist.
“If a man can find gold worth $3,500 in his backyard, it is not easy to tell him not to dig,” he said.
Sir Jonah warned that without job creation and empowering traditional leaders to regulate mining within their jurisdictions, attempts to end illegal mining would remain ineffective.
He further urged African nations to carve out their own unique development path, rather than copying models from elsewhere.
He encouraged young people to embrace technology but not allow it to stifle their originality.
“Don’t drift into the future; design it. Take inspiration from others, but carve your own path,” he said
BY CECILIA YADA LAGBA
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