A ROCHA lauds Police reshuffle, urges tougher action on galamsey

Environmental advocacy group AROCHA Ghana has commended the government for its decisive action in transferring all regional, divisional, and district police commanders serving in mining communities.

The reshuffle targets officers who have served extended periods in these areas without making significant progress in addressing illegal mining. The move is seen as a timely step toward strengthening the fight against the menace.

Speaking on Newsfeed on Channel One TV on Friday, April 4, Deputy National Director of Operations at AROCHA Ghana, Daryl Bosu, said the decision will promote accountability among police commanders and other key stakeholders.

“It is very good to hear the government taking these issues very seriously as one of the key measures to deal with galamsey. For a long time, we have tended to put pressure on MMDAs and let the police command get away with it.

“I am really happy to hear that we are now going to demand accountability from the various divisional commanders in the galamsey-prone areas. It is about time we get everybody in the chain of leadership to be responsible for what is happening.”

Despite welcoming the move, Bosu expressed concerns about the overall approach to fighting illegal mining, describing it as inadequate given the scale of the problem.

According to him, a more forceful and uncompromising approach is needed to deal effectively with the crisis.

“They have been on the street with us, when we were calling for a state of emergency and the repealing, all of these were commitments and promises they made. So we are very happy with the way and manner they handled the fight so far.

“But again, in the fight, it has not been as we expected. We expected them to be more brutal, ruthless, and very persistent to get them out of the field.”