Manasseh Azure slams Mahama’s commitment to galamsey fight
Investigative journalist Manasseh Azure Awuni has voiced strong disappointment over what he describes as President John Dramani Mahama’s lack of seriousness in tackling illegal mining, locally known as galamsey.
Azure’s criticism comes in the wake of the President’s September 10, 2025 media encounter, where Mahama reaffirmed his administration’s resolve to confront the menace.
While acknowledging the President’s competence in other areas of governance, Azure argued that his posture on galamsey betrayed a troubling lack of urgency.
“The destruction didn’t begin only in the last eight years of Akufo-Addo, as the President claimed,” Azure wrote in a Facebook post.
“I was a journalist when Mahama was in office the first time, and I did not see any real commitment to deal with the problem. His body language today still doesn’t suggest it will be any different.”
He cautioned against portraying galamsey as the only livelihood option, insisting that degraded lands can be reclaimed for productive farming. Azure also faulted the government for disbanding a special anti-galamsey task force led by former IGP Christian Tetteh Yohuno.
“Why scrap the IGP’s task force instead of directing them to verify permits when they visit a site? Which sites did they wrongfully target as legitimate concessions?” he quizzed.
Despite praising President Mahama’s broader grasp of national issues, Azure admitted that the galamsey discussion left him feeling disillusioned.
“Mr. President, in many sectors, Ghanaians are beginning to hope again. But on the fight against galamsey, I walked away from your speech feeling more hopeless,” he lamented.
The journalist’s comments add to growing concerns about the effectiveness of successive governments’ anti-galamsey campaigns.
Critics argue that while policies are often announced with fanfare, enforcement remains weak, leaving water bodies and farmlands devastated by illegal mining.
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