The Ghana Coalition Against Galamsey has urged Organised Labour to proceed with their planned strike if the government fails to meet their broader demands in the fight against illegal mining (galamsey).

According to the convener, Dr Kenneth Ashigbey, the group has welcomed President Akufo-Addo’s decision to repeal Legislative Instrument (L.I.) 2462, which permits mining in forest reserves.

However, he said while this was a positive step, the planned strike may still take place depending on the government's response to their other demands, particularly the call for a state of emergency to address the galamsey crisis.

“It’s one of the things that has been asked by Organised Labour and the Media Coalition as well. So that's a good thing to happen. But there are other items. There’s a need for a state of emergency so that we can stop what is happening. It's also very critical,” he said.

• Read also: Gov’t agrees to revoke L.I. 2462 to halt mining in forest reserves – Ghana Federation of Labour claims

He noted that Organised Labour is still preparing for the strike scheduled for October 10, which has the full support of the Ghana Coalition Against Galamsey, including the Media Coalition.

“What we are waiting for is the president's official response to the demand that has been placed before him. And as Organised Labour has told us (Ghana Coalition Against Galamsey), it will be considered again by Organised Labour and try to find out whether it answers the demands that we have to save all of us as people who are being poisoned,” Dr Ashigbey added.

During an engagement with the government on Thursday, October 3, Organised Labour outlined their demands, including the declaration of a state of emergency, the revocation of L.I. 2462, and the deployment of the military to protect forest areas and water bodies from illegal mining activities.

• Read also: Akufo-Addo has pleaded with Organised Labour to call off strike – Ghana Federation of Labour

The Deputy Secretary-General of the Ghana Federation of Labour, Kenneth Koomson, confirmed that the government expressed its commitment to address these demands, specifically agreeing to revoke L.I. 2462.

“Government agreed to respond officially to the demands that we have made. In fact, the government agreed that the L.I. 2462 was going to be revoked, parliament when it reconvenes - steps were going to be taken to ensure that the L.I. 2462 which is one of the demands is revoked,” he said.

He added that while many topics were discussed during the meeting, Organised Labour insisted on receiving an official, written confirmation from the government to ensure transparency and clarity.