Member of Parliament (MP) for Asante Akim South, Kwaku Asante-Boateng, has raised concerns that the government's reluctance to address illegal mining, commonly referred to as galamsey, is influenced by fears of losing the upcoming December 7 elections.

According to Asante-Boateng, the New Patriotic Party's (NPP) previous strong stance against galamsey in 2020 contributed to their losses in several mining communities.

Speaking to journalists on October 2, he suggested that the current hesitance to impose a total ban on all forms of mining stems from this fear, which he believes could affect any political party.

He defended the government's cautious approach, explaining that the apprehension about losing votes is a common political concern, especially in regions where galamsey is prevalent.

“We did it as a party and as a government before the 2020 elections. And if you can recount, all our seats in the mining communities that we were trying to control, we lost all the seats, the parliamentary seats there.

“So do you think for the second time, if we say we want to break the 8 and people are crying for that ban, the current government will have the guts or will find it necessary to put a ban on it?

“The fear of losing power [is delaying the ban] and that fear can happen to any party at all.”