Story By: Akua Oteng Amponsah
Former Senior Presidential Aide Dr. Tony Aidoo has proposed a solution to end illegal mining, or galamsey, within months.
He suggests deploying just over 1,060 soldiers to crush the menace, and believes the government should take this option if serious about tackling galamsey.
Speaking on JoyNews, Dr. Aidoo proposed a specific, time-bound military strategy to rid Ghana’s water bodies and forests of illegal miners. “Using the military for internal security, like elections, is not advisable. The military can be used for more important things that are destroying our country,” Dr. Aidoo asserted.
He questioned the logic of diverting well-resourced military personnel from their core mandate when a grave national security threat like galamsey persists. “We feed the soldiers, we clothe them, we put them in houses, what for? Why is illegal mining going on? Where is the military? That is what they should do,” he admonished.
Dr. Aidoo revealed that his proposed strategy echoes sentiments shared by other prominent figures, including NPP founding member Dr. Nyaho Nyaho Tamakloe.
“Two months ago, I said and I am happy that my opinion was echoed by Dr. Nyaho Tamakloe last week: all you need is to deploy two battalions, 1,000 men supported by two platoons of engineers’ regiments – 30, 30; 1,060 people – and you can flush all these illegal miners out of our water bodies and forests.”
He elaborated on the tactical execution of his plan: “At every spot where you clear, you leave 50 men there. Three weeks, that’s all you need. And that deployment would ensure that these people will leave our waters and forests alone. The 50 men will be deployed for three weeks; that’s all you need. And after that, the galamseyers won’t come back because they wouldn’t know that you have moved out.”
Dr. Aidoo warned the NDC government that failure to decisively act on galamsey and corruption issues risks eroding public trust. “If the goodwill that the people of Ghana gave the NDC is going to be dissipated, it will have to be the inaction on galamsey and corruption issues.” He emphasized the accountability inherent in electoral promises. “If this government doesn’t stop galamsey, I will be disappointed because it was an electoral promise, and you can’t take Ghanaians for a ride.”
