OccupyGhana Pressurizes Akufo-Addo -To Order Land Minister To Declare A State Of Emergency In All Mining Prone Areas
In a remainder letter to the Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Mr Samuel Abu Jinapor and copied to Soireenews.com the group noted that in its open letter to you dated 28 September 2022, we promised to send you a Galamsey Reminder every Monday morning until your government takes drastic steps to control the situation. This is the first Reminder.
Freeman Koryekpor 
The socio-political non-partisan pressure group group, OccupyGhana has mounted intense pressure on President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo to impress upon the Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Mr Samuel Abu Jinapor to declare a sate of emergency in all mining prone areas in the country.
In a remainder letter to the Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Mr Samuel Abu Jinapor and copied to Soireenews.com the group noted that in its open letter to you dated 28 September 2022, we promised to send you a Galamsey Reminder every Monday morning until your government takes drastic steps to control the situation. This is the first Reminder.
The letter noted that "We are convinced that the unprecedented and rampant scale of unregulated and illegal mining has reached a stage where under article 31(9) of the Constitution, it constitutes a ‘situation in which any action is taken or is immediately threatened to be taken by any person or body of persons which— is calculated or likely to deprive the community of the essentials of life; or renders necessary the taking of measures which are required for securing the public safety, the defence of Ghana and the maintenance of public order and of supplies and services essential to the life of the community.’
The letter added that "We risk losing our very essence as a nation unless immediate and radical action is taken, first to STOP all unregulated and illegal mining, and then put a process in place to REGULATE artisanal mining, going forward."
"We therefore request that you take immediate steps towards declaring a state of emergency in every mining area in Ghana. In accordance with article 31(1) of the Constitution, these steps would be, first, seeking and obtaining the advice of the Council of State and, second, publishing a Proclamation of the declaration in the Gazette.
"Thereafter we expect Parliament to be recalled from its vacation, for the government to place before it ‘the facts and circumstances leading to the declaration of the state of emergency’ under article 31(2). Considering the gravity of the situation, we fully expect Parliament to agree with the government and provide that the state of emergency should remain for such period as Parliament may determine, so that the government can get a grasp of the situation," the letter noted.
For our part, the letter asserted that "we have, and are willing to offer, suggestions and proposals on how to establish a properly regulated artisanal mining industry in Ghana that would benefit the wider interest of all Ghanaians.
