An attempt by Government Spokesperson for Governance and Security, Dr. Palgrave Boakye-Danquah, to tout the current administration’s efforts in the fight against illegal mining (galamsey) during an appearance on Metro TV’s Good Morning Ghana was fiercely contested by the host, Dr. Randy Abbey.

During the Tuesday, October 1, 2024, edition of the show, Dr. Boakye-Danquah argued that the government of Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo has shown commitment in fighting the canker, which has led to some positive results, including getting the illegal miners to move from mining along and on water bodies.

“Didn’t you see what happened in the first term and second term? The stakeholders' meetings that we’ve had with the chiefs and the conversations that we have had with them. Didn’t you see that people have moved away from water bodies? That we are continually letting them know…” he stated.

But taking exception to the claims by the government spokesperson, Dr. Randy Abbey challenged Dr. Boakye-Danquah to mention just one water body impacted by galamsey that has since cleared up after mining activities around it were halted.

“Mention one water body, one! One! One! Water body ravaged by galamsey that we do not have any activity there and it’s cleared up,” he queried.

“Mention one forest reserve where there was activity where today there is no activity, there is reclamation,” he added.

Despite attempts by Dr. Boakye-Danquah to claim that the government had successfully reclaimed some land sites, he was countered by the host with data from the Forestry Commission indicating otherwise.

“The Forestry Commission itself, are you aware that just a few months ago, stated that about thirty-something forest reserves have been encroached upon and there is mining going on. Are you aware?” he asked.

The government spokesperson responded by pointing out that the Forestry Commission, by its mandate, is required to fight the encroachment of the country’s forest reserves, for which blame cannot be placed on the government of the day.

“They have a clear mandate,” he retorted.

In response, the host asked: “If they are not delivering on their mandate, is it my man here who will write them a letter? Who will query them? My studio manager here, is he the one to query them? Is he the one to ensure they are doing their job?” the host questioned.

There is pressure mounting on the government to take drastic action against illegal mining activities as several water bodies and forest reserves continue to suffer the ravages of the menace.

Mention one water body that was ravaged by galamsey and is cleared up - Dr. Randy engages @PalgraveDanquah on the fight against galamsey #GoodMorningGhana #MetroTV pic.twitter.com/nvVxuCRR7A

— Metro TV Ghana (@metrotvgh) October 1, 2024