Deputy Chief Executive Officer of the Forestry Commission, Elikem Kotoko, has said that overcoming illegal mining cannot be achieved overnight, but the fight must be seen as a gradual process.

Speaking on Prime Insight on Joy Prime on Saturday, September 13, he explained that tackling the menace requires consistency and patience.

“I must admit, and I think many would agree with me, that the process of cleaning up and all of this is not just an event. It is a process because you would have to do A first before you move to B, go to C and finally arrive at Z.

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"But you cannot think that because we want to arrive at Z, we start from A and suddenly jump to Z and then declare to the people of Ghana that we have successfully done that,” Mr Kotoko said.

He called for collective concern over the fight against illegal mining, pointing to the environmental and health dangers it poses.

“Everybody needs to be very concerned about the battle against illegal mining. The President has demonstrated that he wants to make sure this challenge is resolved once and for all. In one way, there must be a starting point, and I have a saying that you must start from where you stand,” he added.

Mr Kotoko also warned that pollution of water bodies was not only an environmental issue but also a public health threat, linking it to kidney disease and other complications.

“If we do not confront these things, there’s an existential threat to us all, not only me but also the young ones. Whilst our water bodies get polluted, it has a lot of effect on us, the kidney situation that was raised, and other health challenges,” he said.

According to him, President John Mahama has shown strong political will to address the problem and is backing words with action.

“President Mahama has not only demonstrated the political will, but he is actually walking the talk. In the past, it was so prevalent that people pointed fingers at strong political stalwarts who were neck-deep in these activities.

"President Mahama has made it clear consistently that any officer, appointee, or person, even within his party, who is found or alleged to be involved will be given up,” Mr Kotoko stated.