Photo: The Minister and his entourage in a group picture with Otumfuo at his palace.
The Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, has turned to Asantehene Otumfuo Osei Tutu II for backing in the government’s latest crackdown on illegal mining and forest destruction.
In a high-profile meeting on Friday, Buah admitted that Ghana’s forests and water bodies are under serious attack from galamsey operators, revealing that 44 out of 288 forest reserves have been wiped out by illegal mining. Even more shocking, the turbidity levels of major water bodies have skyrocketed from 5,000 NTU to a staggering 12,000 NTU, making clean water a luxury.
To tackle this crisis, Buah rolled out sweeping measures, including:
• Setting up an 18-member expert committee to review mining licenses.
• Reclassifying mining categories to introduce a new medium-scale mining model.
• Overhauling the controversial Community Mining Scheme, which has been abused for illegal mining activities.
“We are grateful for Otumfuo’s wisdom and support in pushing this reset agenda. We have to act fast before it’s too late,” Buah declared.
Otumfuo Drops Bombshell: Galamsey Big Men Must Face Justice!
But Otumfuo Osei Tutu II wasn’t impressed with the usual talk—he laid down the hard truth.
“If you are serious about stopping galamsey, stop going after the small boys. The real criminals are the so-called big men. Go after them and prosecute them!” Otumfuo fired.
He warned that unless the government targets the real masterminds, illegal mining will continue unchecked, no matter how many committees are formed.
Otumfuo also issued a stern warning against the rampant sale of public lands to politically connected individuals. He urged the minister to put a stop to this disgraceful practice, which has seen public lands vanish into the hands of a few privileged elites.
On the government’s afforestation drive, Otumfuo gave his full backing, describing the “Tree of Life” initiative as a solid step toward reversing Ghana’s environmental destruction.
But the big question remains—will the government finally act on Otumfuo’s bold advice, or will this just be another talk shop?
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