This Saturday's edition of JoyNews' Newsfile, Ghana’s cocoa industry, long a backbone of the national economy, finds itself at a crossroads.

Cocoa farmers face pricing cuts and debt legacies at home, illegal mining threatens farmlands and export credibility, and in the political arena one of the most closely watched constituencies is in the eye of a vote-buying storm.

Also, galamsey continues to degrade soil, pollute waterways and displace agricultural activity in key cocoa belts. ,Illegal gold mining, or galamsey, has long been an environmental and economic scourge, but a new JoyNews Hotline documentary A Tax for Galamsey: The Extortion Racket Fueling Illegal Mining has escalated the debate to governance and accountability.

The investigation revealed allegations that district assemblies in mining communities are collecting fees from operators of banned mining equipment, effectively creating a system of galamsey taxation that rewards non-compliance and protection over enforcement.

In politics, what should have been a routine by-election selection has become a flashpoint for questions of integrity and internal democracy. Following the Ayawaso East parliamentary primary on 7 February, the National Democratic Congress (NDC) has decided to retain Mohammed Baba Jamal Ahmed as its candidate for the March 3 by-election, even amid multiple allegations of vote buying and inducement that emerged during the delegate vote.

Watch livesstream below: