President of IMANI Africa, Franklin Cudjoe says it is unlikely Traditional Authorities will discontinue their interests in an entreprise they benefit from despite Akufo-Addo meeting them over the galamsey menace.
President Akufo-Addo says the protection of the lands against illegal small-scale mining also known as galamsey should be the responsibility of the traditional rulers and the government.
Addressing the House of Chiefs at the Ashanti regional capital Kumasi on Wednesday, October 5, 2022 President Akufo-Addo indicated that ownership of the lands rests with both the government and chiefs hence protecting it should be a collective one.
“80 percent of the lands in this country continue to be under your custody, much of it having been acquired through the blood and sacrifices of your ancestors. The remainder of 20 percent which I hold in trust of the people of Ghana, derived from state acquisition from you.
“What this means is that ultimately, the welfare of the state of the lands is our joint responsibility, although by statute the minerals in the soil belong to the President in trust for the people,” the President explained.
He also pleaded for the support of the chiefs in applying stringent measures to curb the galamsey menace in the country.
Commenting on Akufo-Addo’s meeting with the House of Chiefs over the galamsey menace, Cudjoe who described the traditional rulers as the godfathers of galamsey said they[Chiefs] have a vested interest in the entreprise hence do not share the same sentiments with the President on the national crusade against illegal mining.
“Galamsey just got another bad name today. The godfathers assembled to disown their own child but will continue benefitting from its existence,” he wrote in a Facebook post.
