Politics Over National Survival
Joseph Yamin, ex-Deputy Sports Minister and now a senior NDC executive, has thrown Ghana’s war on illegal mining into chaos. His directive to President John Dramani Mahama to dismantle the anti-galamsey task force is not based on science, law, or the environment. It is based on one thing: votes in 2028.
“They Chair Church Harvests” — Yamin’s Justification
According to Yamin, galamsey operators are the lifeblood of mining communities because they chair church harvests, finance community events, and splash money around. This is his justification for protecting them. But should Ghana’s future be auctioned off to illegal miners simply because they donate cash at funerals and church services?
The Real Cost of Galamsey
Every Ghanaian knows the truth: galamsey is destroying our rivers, poisoning our water, devastating cocoa farms, and ripping apart forests. Communities across the country are already paying the price, as taps run dry and farmland turns into toxic wasteland. Yet, instead of protecting the people, a ruling party executive tells the President to protect galamsey votes.
History of Political Cowardice
This is not the first time politics has killed the galamsey fight. In 2013, Mahama’s first task force collapsed under political interference. In 2017, Akufo-Addo’s Operation Vanguard also failed after corruption and sabotage. Now, in 2025, Mahama is again being told by his own men to give up the fight. The cycle of betrayal continues.
A Dangerous Precedent
If President Mahama bows to Yamin’s reckless call, the NDC government will be remembered as the one that sold Ghana’s rivers and forests for electoral gain. That is not leadership. That is political cowardice wrapped in the language of “livelihoods.”
The Choice Before Mahama
President Mahama must decide: will he defend Ghana’s environment and safeguard the nation’s future, or will he bend to the selfish demands of politicians who see illegal miners only as campaign financiers?
History is watching. Posterity is watching. And if Mahama yields, Ghana will lose — not in 2028, but forever.
