The Convener of the Anti-Galamsey Coalition, Ken Ashigbey, has proposed the establishment of a fast-track court as a key measure to curb illegal mining, particularly involving foreigners.
According to him, such a court would ensure that offenders are sanctioned and fined before being deported from the country.
His suggestion follows a directive by the Minister for the Interior,Muntaka Mohammed Mubarak cautioning that any foreigner found engaging in illegal mining (galamsey) or fraudulent activities would be repatriated.
The minister made this declaration while addressing the Regional Command Conference at the Police Headquarters on March 21.
In response, Ashigbey argued that deportation alone would not be effective, as many of these foreigners could easily find their way back into the country due to Ghana’s porous borders.
Speaking on Eyewitness News on Citi Fm on March 21, Muntaka stressed that imposing fines through a fast-track court system could serve as both a deterrent and a means to restore damaged forest reserves and water bodies.
“…But there are a few things that are not being done right. The Minerals and Mining Act, as amended in 2019, provides safer sanctions. When you deport these people, they will come back again. So what you should do is set up a 24-hour fast-track court so that within 24 hours, when these foreigners are arrested, they are taken to court and fined.
“These fines are used to restore the forest and water bodies. After they finish serving that long sentence, then we deport them. We should not just deport them because when we do that, they will come back. This is one of the wrong policies to fight galamsey.” he suggested.
However, he commended the government for the initiatives implemented to combat the illegal mining menace and urged his members to join the fight against the practice.
“This government is on the right path by dealing with the issue of galamsey. But there are a lot of the correct things that are being done. The issue of declaring war on galamsey is up… The fact that we have heard the president add his voice to it and ask those in his government who want to go into mining to resign first before coming all of those things are correct and are the right things to do. And all of us in the media coalition must add our voices to support the government to succeed.” he stated.
