Private legal practitioner and former Member of Parliament for the Asante-Akim North Constituency, Hon. Andy Appiah-Kubi has argued that a reorientation of local communities in mining areas will serve as a major tool for success in the fight against illegal mining, otherwise known as ‘galamsey.’

In the wake of the recent attacks on state operatives leading the fight against illegal mining by illegal miners, Hon. Appiah-Kubi is of the view that it is as a result of the involvement of community leaders; that is why there has been a sudden turn of events whereby community members are now protecting illegal miners instead of resisting illegal mining as they did in the past.

“Where community leaders do not agree to or do not work with the illegal miners, it is not possible. It is possible to resist them if the leaders themselves are not part of it.”
Hon. Andy Appiah-Kubi, Private legal practitioner and former Member of Parliament for the Asante-Akim North Constituency

He noted that in the past, community leaders, with the help of their members, fiercely resisted illegal mining; however, leaders and members of local communities in mining areas now shield illegal miners and can now even muster the courage to attack state institutions and operatives who have been tasked to lead the charge to curb the menace of illegal mining.

Hon. Andy Appiah-Kubi, Private legal practitioner and former Member of Parliament for the Asante-Akim North Constituency

On Saturday, November 1, 2025, the Director of Operations of the National Anti-Illegal Mining Operations Secretariat (NAIMOS) and his team were attacked at Hwidiem, a mining community in the Asutifi South constituency, with the alleged support of the member of parliament for the Asutifi North Constituency, Hon. Ebenezer Kwaku Addo, who has since been invited by the Ghana Police Criminal Investigation Department (CID) to help with investigations.

Hon. Appiah-Kubi argued that it is as a result of the mindset of the people about the gravity of the damage being caused by illegal mining that they continue to engage in the act, emphasizing the need for collective efforts to educate the locals on the extent of the menace of illegal mining.

The former member of parliament asserted that “the orientation of the people is changing because of lack of education,” emphasizing that “they are not properly educated as to the consequences of what they are doing.”

“The fights should be started from the local communities. And for them to do that, they need to understand what you are doing; they also need to understand that you are also not part, and they need to understand why you want them to fight it.”
Hon. Andy Appiah-Kubi, Private legal practitioner and former Member of Parliament for the Asante-Akim North Constituency

He further backed his argument for the involvement of the local community members in the fight by emphasizing that inasmuch as the state may be able to deploy security personnel to these mining areas, these personnel will not perpetually stay in those areas to be able to apprehend all the perpetrators of the menace, adding that the community members could even serve as whistleblowers.

“The military, if you send them, they are not going to stay in the bush for seven days of the week and 24 hours in the day. So, they will find out those who infiltrate easily. So let the community be the base of the fight.
“Let them also provide information immediately when they get it, and sometimes from my experience. It depends also on the security personnel in the community.”
Hon. Andy Appiah-Kubi, Private legal practitioner and former Member of Parliament for the Asante-Akim North Constituency

Hon. Appiah-Kubi further noted that the leaders of the various communities have the benefit of often knowing about mining activities in their localities because people who come into those localities to engage in mining activities will usually engage the local leaders first.

He further emphasized that this is more reason why he believes that local community leaders should be reoriented to side with state-sponsored operatives to wage a stronger fight against illegal mining, adding that the fight must not be seen as a sole responsibility of the ruling government but must be fought on a collective front that excludes politicization.

“Let’s not point political fingers. It will not work if you point to political party A or party B; once you go political, you lose the fight. So let us not attempt to be blaming one person because of his political lineage; let’s see the problem as a problem confronting all of us as a nation.”
Hon. Andy Appiah-Kubi, Private legal practitioner and former Member of Parliament for the Asante-Akim North Constituency

He therefore emphasized that given the circumstance surrounding the fight against illegal mining, the most viable channel would be a reorientation of local communities to align them with state actors in order to have a collective front to combat illegal mining successfully.