The axe must fall on soldiers protecting galamsey operators

We have always suspected that the security agencies have been involved in some illegal activities, including galamsey, but the leadership has consistently denied it. 

Some high-ranking politicians, such as ministers of state, Members of Parliament and chief executives of assemblies, are also suspected to be deeply involved in galamsey operations.

If this were not so, why had metropolitan, municipal and district chief executives (MMDCEs) in whose areas these illegal mining activities take place, never taken action to halt their operations? Had they been scared of some higher powers?

The Daily Graphic commends the Defence Minister, Mr Dominic Nitiwul, for ordering investigations into the activities of some soldiers who have been implicated for protecting an illegal mining site in the Ashanti Region. 

We would like to urge the minister and the Military High Command to take the investigations beyond just the fresh case of the arrested soldiers.

The investigations should cover other areas where soldiers are suspected of or cited for providing cover for illegalities to thrive. For instance, soldiers’ alleged involvement in providing cover for illegal logging, sand-winning, protecting one faction against others in land issues and their direct involvement in ‘land guarding’ must be looked into.

The Daily Graphic believes the incident is an opportunity for the Ministry of Defence and the Military High Command to do an introspection in order to rid the rank and file of the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF) of unscrupulous individuals who hide behind state power and the uniform to perpetrate illegalities and bring the name of the GAF and the security services in general into disrepute.

While we are dealing with the galamsey menace, we also need to draw attention to the fact that anytime initiatives are put together to fight an illegality or push a certain campaign, it quickly becomes an avenue for some people to amass wealth. 

At the harbours, for instance, because importers would not want to do what is right, task forces are put in place to check leakages and trucks laden with smuggled items on which duties have not been paid. But these are areas where members of the task forces siphon money.

So we are looking up to the government to crack the whip to weed the system of unscrupulous people. We keep saying that the challenge facing the country is not the lack of statutes. Indeed, we have too many laws. Our bane is the lack of enforcement. If we do not enforce laws for people to suffer the consequences of their actions, there will be no way people will do what is right.

The Managing Director of the Graphic Communications Group Limited, Mr Ken Ashigbey, has always said that the mounting challenge of the country is the result of leadership failure — leaders in all spheres of life. 

Therefore, political, business, religious and traditional leaders must all stand up and be counted in our present fight against illegal miners who are destroying our heritage. Otherwise, when the history of the country is written, this present generation, particularly those in leadership, will be mentioned as having played significant roles in perpetrating those illegalities.

The Daily Graphic supports efforts by the Ministry of Defence to bring those soldiers to book, and we will be monitoring the situation to its logical conclusion.