Attorney-General and Minister for Justice, Godfred Yeboah Dame, has asked the Chief Justice, Gertrude Torkornoo, to instruct judges handling galamsey cases to deliver their rulings within a month of the cases being presented in court.
The Minister explained that when this is done, it would help address the destruction of our water bodies and forest reserves.
He said the activities of unregulated miners and unauthorised companies operating in protected areas must be dealt with.
Speaking at the Annual Conference of the Association of Magistrates and Judges of Ghana, held at the La Beach Hotel on Wednesday, October 2, 2024, the Minister opined that “One category of cases whose speed of resolution by our courts, I often lament, is the trial of illegal mining cases. It is beyond argument that the form of illegal mining known as “galamsey” continues to wreak incalculable damage to our forest reserves and river bodies. A major setback to the struggle against galamsey is the rate of adjudication and punishment of offenders.
“Your ladyship, I therefore respectfully call on you to direct all judges sitting on galamsey cases to conclude the cases, the hearing of which has started, within one month from the commencement of the legal year on 10th October 2024.”
“Politicians must also desist from encouraging galamsey through their rhetoric and actions. Those who preach amnesty for galamsey offenders must be rejected. There should be no place for the grant of amnesty for such crimes in our body politic, as the lives of citizens and the future of our nation are at risk.”
By: Rainbowradioonline.com/Ghana
