The Director of Communication of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Richard Ahiagbah, has taken a swipe at the National Democratic Congress (NDC), revealing that the party’s record on galamsey is criminal.

According to him, the opposition party has launched scathing attacks on government following the release of a report by Prof Frimpong-Boateng, head of the erstwhile Inter-Ministerial Committee on Illegal Mining (IMCIM). He revealed that the NDC must learn to keep certain things above partisan politics and galamsey is one of such things.

“We know the NDC’s record on galamsey is criminal, to put it mildly. The fight against galamsey proceeds without fear or favor. Let’s all get involve less the partisanship that often weakens the cooperation we need to triumph. Please watch the attached NDC galamsey video, and I am sure you conclude with me that the NDC needs to get serious with the fight against galamsey. Their double standard on a matter as serious as galamsey is sickening.”
Richard Ahiagbah

Reacting to the National Democratic Congress (NDC) press conference held by the party’s National Communications Officer, Sammy Gyamfi, on Tuesday April 25, 2023, regarding illegal small-scale mining (galamsey), Mr Ahiagbah described the presser as legendary.

Contained in a statement, Mr Ahiagbah, stated that the NPP’s position on Professor Kwabena Frimpong-Boateng’s document is seen in its support of the President’s prompt referral of the document to the CID for an independent investigation. That, he explained, is the democratic way, of which the NDC is fully aware.

The NPP’s director of communications noted that the fight against galamsey is existential, however sadly, the NDC has never seen it as such.

“The NDC sees it first as politics, an avenue to canvass votes either by way of promising galamseyers more galamsey when they ever win power or to do what they did yesterday in the press conference to besmirch the character of the people cited in the document on the weight of simple claims.”
Richard Ahiagbah

Mr Ahiagbah indicated that the individuals cited in Prof Frimpong-Boateng’s report, especially, the information minister, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, has responded to state his innocence. Nonetheless, he highlighted that the NDC simply refused to acknowledge it or be by restrained it.

“Instead, the NDC went full hog to display their pictures as though they have been found culpable of anything. What would it have cost the NDC to have waited for the CID to complete its investigation and render its report for public scrutiny? Perhaps, the NDC is not aware that President Akufo-Addo has referred Prof. Boateng’s report to the CID.”
Richard Ahiagbah

Furthermore, Mr Ahiagbah underscored that the NPP, unlike the NDC, is committed to the fight against galamsey, and thus far has made considerable gains. However, he conceded that there is a lot more that needs to be done and “all of us must pinch in”.

“It is my humble appeal to all Ghanaians to get involved by reporting galamsey activities, learn about its dire implications for our very existence, and on that basis speak objectively against galamsey.”
Richard Ahiagbah

NDC describes government appointees as galamsey kingpins

It will be recalled that the national communications officer of the NDC, Sammy Gyamfi, during the press conference described as “galamsey kingpins” all the government appointees cited in the Professor Kwabena Frimpong-Boateng report. He served notice that the NDC will be petitioning the Clerk of Parliament and the Office of Special Prosecutor (OSP) to launch investigations into the matter.

The report details the operations of the erstwhile Inter-Ministerial Committee on Illegal Mining (IMCIM), citing some government officials for working against the spirited fight against the destruction of forests and water bodies.

Prof Frimpong-Boateng indicated that only two ministers – Water and Sanitation and Local Government and Rural Development – kept faith with the mandate of the Committee. He revealed that all the rest including the Information Minister, Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, abandoned the Committee.

He stated that many of the appointees of President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo were neck-deep in galamsey and engaged in the activity with reckless abandon.

Additionally, he noted that the report underscored the fact that “illegal mining has been a free-for-all enterprise” of appointees of government.

Among the appointees cited in the report include Laud Commey, Charles Nii Tagoe, Minister of Information Kojo Oppong Nkrumah, former Senior Minister Yaw Osafo-Mafo, New Patriotic Party (NPP) lawyer Gabby Asare Otchere-Darko, former New Patriotic Party (NPP) lawmaker Joseph Albert Quarm, Kwadwo Osei Afriyie, popularly known as Sir John, who died on July 1, 2020, as the Forestry Commission Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and his PA Charles Owusu.