Deputy National Director of A Rocha Ghana, Daryl Bosu, has raised alarm over what he describes as the growing normalisation of illegal mining practices, warning that it is frustrating national efforts to combat galamsey.

Speaking on JoyNews' News Desk on Tuesday in reaction to recent revelations of an alleged extortion network linked to illegal mining operations in the Ashanti Region, Mr Bosu said Ghana faces an “existential problem” as rivers and farmlands continue to be destroyed.

“We have an existential problem destroying our lands and rivers; instead of joining forces to curb it, we are not doing that. We tend to be more occupied with getting resources and revenue from that.

“There’s no point in saying that this has not become normalised and I’m afraid… it is sad to say that it is affecting the galamsey fight,” he said.

He stressed that such developments provide clear evidence that illegal practices have taken root on the ground, undermining every attempt to end the menace.

“This is clear evidence that some have very normalised practices on the ground now, which is actually frustrating every effort to fight against galamsey,” he warned.

Mr Bosu argued that the posture of some state institutions appears to mirror the same profit-driven approach, citing concerns about the operations of GoldBod.

“You realise that this is actually the same posture the state, I’ll say at the national level, also has when it comes to GoldBod,” he noted.

According to him, the practice of actively buying gold linked to illegal mining, while guaranteeing markets for such minerals, risks entrenching galamsey rather than eliminating it.

His comments follow revelations contained in a JoyNews Hotline investigative documentary titled “A Tax for Galamsey: The extortion racket fuelling illegal mining.”

The investigation alleges that illegal mining activities in the Amansie Central District of the Ashanti Region are not only being tolerated but are systematically taxed, receipted, and protected by government appointees.

According to the documentary, undercover reporting, secret recordings, documentary evidence, and on-the-ground infiltration point to an alleged extortion network involving the District Assembly and a task force operating under the authority of the District Chief Executive.