A former Minister of Finance and MP for Atiwa West, Abena Osei Asare, has reaffirmed her belief that the battle against illegal mining, commonly referred to as galamsey, is far from a lost cause.

Speaking on Joy FM’s Super Morning Show on Monday, June 9, she emphasised that while the issue remains deeply challenging, it can be addressed through a united front involving both political leadership and public participation.

She was responding to a question about the galamsey activities in her constituency.

“It’s not a lost cause,” Osei Asare stated plainly. “It is a challenging issue, but it is not a lost cause. It is not just about a political will, but the people’s should be there.”

She argued that political resolve alone cannot yield success in the fight against galamsey, stressing the need for collaboration with communities and citizens at large.

“These two should work together—you can’t have one and leave the other, and that is where the challenge is,” she explained. “We need the people’s will in addition to the political will.”

Osei Asare also noted that authorities are striving to engage the populace more actively.

“We are trying as much as possible to engage the people because if the political will is there and the people’s will is not there, we would be working [In vain]…” she said.

“That is why we are engaging people—so that we can work together politically and at the community level to achieve the balance that we want,” she concluded.