The Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Christian Tetteh Yohuno, has reaffirmed the Police Service’s commitment to helping deal decisively with the unending illegal mining activities, popularly known as galamsey.
Speaking on UTV’s “Mpu Ne Mpu”, broadcast on Friday, July 25, 2025, the IGP noted that the Ghana Police Service, under his watch, has devised new strategies, including the change in District commands, to properly tackle the myriad of issues related to galamsey and its related impacts.
“When I took over as the Inspector General of Police, I assured the President of the Republic that I would mobilise my officers so that we would fight this galamsey menace, and so we started. Without waiting for any support from anywhere, we went straight into the galamsey fights, starting from the Western and Central regions, specifically Samreboi. We have been able to retrieve over 106 excavators and many other items,” the IGP revealed.
IGP Yohuno explained that the commanders who were changed were compromised in the Galamsey activities, necessitating their removal so that the police can work effectively in bringing finality to the Galamsey menace.
“There is are lot of destruction going on in our forest reserves. Our forest reserves have been devastated, so we managed to make some arrests to reduce further destruction of the Samreboi forest reserve.
“The fight is ongoing. I have charged my commanders to be up and doing in dealing with the menace. I have made a few changes, especially with some of them who have stayed in the mining areas for long and have compromised their operations because of this galamsey. The first thing I did was to make changes and bring new energetic ones and people who are committed to work”, he added.
According to the IGP, a special team of officers has been sent from the Capital to Nkawie to help deal with the illegal mining activities.
“The police service has resourced them with whatever they need to fight the galamsey to the core,” IGP Yohuno added, further adding that the officers were met with lots of resistance from the town folks, whose livelihoods largely depended on illegal mining activities. But this is what we have committed to do, so they are still there.
“Every two weeks, we change them so that they are not compromised”, he stressed. “We heard that there were galasmey activities along the Bui river, so we had to send our men there to make some arrests as well as seize excavators and other galasmey equipment. So our men are on the field. We are not relenting. We are fighting this to the end,” IGP assured.
Source : Kobina Darlington/Peacefmonline.com
