The Director of Communications for the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP), Richard Ahiagbah, has urged President Mahama's government to use all available resources to combat illegal mining, commonly known as galamsey.

Speaking at a press conference on Wednesday, March 26, Mr Ahiagbah stressed the urgency of taking decisive action to address the environmental damage caused by galamsey, which is threatening the country’s forest reserves and overall ecosystem.

He reminded the public of a promise made by President John Dramani Mahama during his campaign, where he vowed to put an end to illegal mining.

Mr Ahiagbah highlighted that President Mahama had specifically promised to repeal L1 2462 to stop the mining activities that are destroying Ghana's forests.

“The President made a commitment to end galamsey, and we must remind him of that promise,” Mr Ahiagbah said.

Mr Ahiagbah criticised the current administration for failing to deliver on this promise. Instead of taking strong action, he noted, the government has proposed amendments to the law that would allow illegal mining to continue in some form.

"This proposed amendment takes away the president's power to approve or reject applications for the use of forest reserves, which weakens efforts to stop illegal mining," he explained.

He warned that if the government continues with this approach, Ghana could lose a significant portion of its forest reserves.

“At this rate, we are likely to lose a vast majority, if not all of our forest reserves,” Mr Ahiagbah cautioned.