The Coordinator of Eco-Conscious Citizens, Awula Serwah, has called for a national, non-partisan approach to tackle illegal mining, warning that the continued politicisation of the crisis threatens the survival of Ghana’s natural environment.
Speaking on The Big Issue on Channel One TV on Saturday, September 20, 2025, Madam Serwah described illegal mining, popularly known as galamsey, as an “ecocide” that endangers forests, rivers, and farmlands. She urged leaders across the political divide to act decisively before irreparable damage is done.
“If our ancestors had been as wicked as we are, we wouldn’t have come to meet the environment as we came to meet it. But we don’t believe the political will is there,” she said.
According to her, successive governments have failed to sustain long-term interventions, often turning the fight into a political football. She cautioned that changing positions on urgent measures such as declaring a state of emergency, depending on which party is in power, undermines progress.
Madam Serwah stressed that the problem requires bold, collective commitment rather than partisan posturing. “The time has come to stop politicising this issue and look at what we are doing to stop this ecocide,” she insisted.
Environmentalists, including Eco-Conscious Citizens, have long argued that Ghana risks losing critical water bodies and fertile lands if urgent and sustained action is not taken.
