Several protesters have gathered at the Revolution Square in Accra on Sunday evening for a vigil ahead of a planned march against illegal mining, also known as galamsey.
The demonstration was announced by the Convenor of the #FixTheCountry movement, Oliver Barker-Vormawor, who explained that the march was intended to draw attention to the destruction of Ghana’s environment and water bodies caused by galamsey.
As the crowd grew, Deputy Director of Operations at the Presidency and Deputy General Secretary of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), Mustapha Gbande, arrived at the square to speak to the protesters.
The protestors, however, opposed his presence and disregarded his plea for calm.
In their official response, the protesters insisted they would not leave and asked political figures to stay away. One protester said, “If Ghanaians were convinced of what the NDC government said, we wouldn’t be here. So please leave here, let’s exercise our right in peace. NDC leaders, please leave here. We are going to send you a petition tomorrow. We are going to engage you tomorrow, so please leave. Away! Away! No political party here. We don’t want to see any political party here. We are not here to engage any political party.”
Some protesters used the platform to criticise the government’s approach to fighting illegal mining. One protester argued that instead of targeting small-scale operators, authorities should arrest powerful figures named in Professor Kwabena Frimpong-Boateng’s galamsey report.
“Anyone mentioned in that galamsey report by Prof Frimpong-Boateng, in any serious jurisdiction, all those criminals, those thugs are supposed to be cooling off in Nsawam Prison. Stop going after those little boys in the pit. Go after the real kingpins.
To be honest with you, the President has disappointed us. Eight months into your government we’ve not seen any action but each and every day the Ghana Police are arresting the small boys,” the protester said.
Others expressed disappointment at the low turnout from young people, urging them to take issues of national survival seriously. One protester warned that if illegal mining is not dealt with decisively, “very soon there will be no water flowing through the taps.”
Another accused the President of being misled by advisors who claim there is no need for a state of emergency, adding that the crisis goes beyond party politics.
“This protest is not about any political party or their interest, it’s about our common survival as a people,” the protester stated. “The President is becoming a disaster if he doesn’t act fast and hard on galamsey.”
The vigil continues through the night, with organisers confirming that a full protest march will take place tomorrow, on Monday, September 22.