Convenor of the Media Coalition Against Galamsey, Dr. Kenneth Ashigbey, has appealed to Ghanaian journalists and media houses to stay vigilant and maintain their focus in the fight against illegal mining, channel1news.com has reported.
He further asked them to intensify their campaign, highlighting severe effects of galamsey on water bodies and the environment.
“And I will urge the media at this point, let’s not lose our focus from what the fight is. Let us not allow those who came to join us recently to take our focus off the fight. Let’s keep our focus on the fight, let them deal with their issues as labour,” he stated.
Dr. Ashigbey made this statement in an interview on Channel One TV’s The Point of View.
His appeal came after the suspension of a nationwide strike by Organised Labour, which was slated for October 10, 2024, in light of the government’s outlined measures to address the situation.
The government has tasked the Minister of Defence with the deployment of more troops to strengthen “Operation Halt,” a campaign focused at fighting galamsey.
Dr Ashigbey emphasised the importance of journalists continuing to hold the government accountable in fulfilling its recent promises in the fight against galamsey.
“Our job (media) currently is the fact that we need to bring pressure to bear on all the people to ensure that what has been said, the end goal of ending galamsey, we’re doing it, and we are mounting it, so that is what we should be doing.”
He stressed that the media must persist in promoting sustainable mining practices to safeguard Ghana’s natural resources.
RAD/ ADG
Source: ghanaweb