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Illegal mining, commonly known as "galamsey", affects many areas of life, both negatively and positively.
But the enormous social, environmental and ecological problems it has caused have made its positive, essentially economic aspect, forgotten.
Galamsey came to say all that is bad for the country.
The effects on the environment include loss of biodiversity and contamination of soils, groundwater and surface water.
In fact, the negative impact of this practice is staggering.
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It is in this context that the government, with the tacit support of many patriotic and well-meaning citizens, civil society organizations and the media, launched a campaign to clean up the mining sector about two years ago.
Much has been achieved during the period. The turbidity of rivers in which mining was illegal has greatly improved.
Some of the rivers that were used as collection points by the Ghana Water Company Limited, but which had been abandoned by the company due to the inability to treat water, are now being processed for consumption.
These achievements were made at a very high cost for the country in terms of human and material resources.
But among these achievements, there are very damning accusations of complicity on the part of some officials to torpedo the gains made.
The Daily Graphic is pleased to note that investigations are underway to establish the facts and inform any further action.
We warmly welcome the government for its commitment in the fight against illegal mining.
We conclude unequivocally that the measures this government has taken to counter the threat testify to its desire to put an end to this destructive activity once and for all, although some individuals may want to take advantage of it. the situation for their selfish interests.
But, as we also think, it is clear that the government is aware that much more needs to be done to seal any loopholes that could jeopardize efforts to end illegal mining chancre.
We learn that the Cabinet, in an additional effort to tighten the successes registered so far and to take advantage of it, has banned the ban on importing excavators.
This prohibition must remain in force until further notice. Ghanaians are witnessing the devastation these excavators have caused to the environment due to their use in illegal mining activities.
This is due to the fact that miners do not recover land after their activities.
The Daily Graphic thinks the ban is going in the right direction. Our concern is that it is not just illegal miners who use excavators.
Areas such as road and quarry construction also depend on these machines.
It is in this perspective that we urge the Cabinet to put in place measures so that people using these excavators in their work do not suffer unduly from this prohibition.
We are also delighted that the allocation of allowances and personal emissions from the Minerals Commission has been more than doubled to encourage them to work harder and obviously avoid any influence of corruption.
We call on public servants to be sincere to themselves and to the country and to work to help win the war against illegal mining.
While part of the company will be affected by the latest cabinet decision, but we all call for patience and support to ensure the end of galamsey in the interest of all and posterity.
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