Galamsey: This Has Nothing To Do With Unemployment…It’s Purely ‘Greed’ – Frank Bannor 

The Head of Research at policy think tank, Danquah Institute, Frank Bannor has diagnosed the reasons why galamsey keeps thriving in Ghana irrespective of efforts by the ruling New Patriotic Party under the leadership of President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to clamp down on this illegal mining menace.

Currently, there have been series of demonstrations against galamsey with some protesters threatening to vote out the government.

Also, Organized Labour has threatened a nationwide strike to compel the President to take action against the galamseyers.

Responding to the issues during Peace FM’s “Kokrokoo” show, Frank Bannor deflated the argument that those in galamsey business are doing so because of unemployment.

Mr. Bannor made reference to the National Alternative Employment Livelihood Programme (NAELP) which has been instituted by government to provide alternative livelihoods for the galameyers for sustainable national development.

But to him, the Ghanaians into galamsey are not ready to be employed, rather they prefer to destroy the environment for gold.

According to Frank Bannor, the galamseyers are driven by greed, stressing “it is not about the lack of opportunities but it is about the greed of the ordinary Ghanaian. That is driving them to do what they are doing. So, because of greed, we don’t think about posterity”.

“What will make a person cut down his cocoa farm and proudly videos it saying we will destroy this cocoa to mine gold when the same person knows that when his brother goes to school, it is the money from cocoa that is used to build schools, hospitals for that person who is cutting down the cocoa to go for medical treatment when he/she is sick, construct roads in his/her community? If it is not because of greed, why would someone make such a statement?”, he questioned.

Source: Ghmessenger.com