A former minister of Lands and Natural Resources wants the inter-ministerial taskforce on galamsey to prioritise education of traditional leaders if they want to effectively clamp down illegal mining activities. Mr. Mike Hammah told Myjoyonline.com most traditional leaders, in most cases, do not know the position of the law when it comes to natural resources on their land. He said Article 257(6) of the Constitution expressly say all mineral resources in Ghana are held in trust by the President for the people of Ghana, and this must be made known to the traditional rulers. He also wants the committee to collaborate with civil society organisations (CSO) who have done a lot of work on galamsey. “I think the committee must be firm and fair, I expect the committee to be on the ground, I expect the committee to also engage the civil society organisations because I am sure they have an input to help the committee to achieve its mandate “I also expect the committee to do a lot of education and sensitization. Because my experience is that quite a number of the traditional authorities do not know the position of the law when it comes to natural resources.” The former Minister also stated that “the governance chain in the mining sector is as strong as the weakest link, and it will snap at where the link is very weak”. “The missing link has been for the fact that if other sectors in the governance chain do not perform their duties efficiently, no matter what the Ministry of Lands and Natural resources will do in terms of policy formation, legal and regulatory implementation of the strategies, there is very little that can be achieved”, he said. He said the inter-ministerial taskforce was one of the key recommendations which came up during the national mining forum held under the auspices of the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources in 2012. This was followed by a high level strategic meeting. “From that high level strategic meeting, we also had the roadmap with milestone, timelines, deliverable, action plan and budget. I am sure the ministry is rolling out that programme, which involves short and medium terms.” Mr Mike Hammah added it is against this background that he is happy with the President's coordinated approach to tackle the galamsey menace. “It is against this background that I endorse the action that the president has taken because I believe it is in line with the recommendation of the high level strategic meeting that was held following from the national mining forum.”