Dr. Ing. Ken Ashigbey, the leader of the Media Coalition Against Galamsey, has called for direct intervention from the President to tackle the severe environmental damage caused by illegal mining.

Ashigbey argues that the Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources, which has struggled to manage the crisis from the beginning, is now beyond its capacity to resolve the issue effectively.

His comments came in response to Samuel Abu Jinapor's recent announcement of the ministry's new measures and strategies to combat the problem.

While acknowledging the efforts of the minister, Ashigbey believes that the situation has escalated to a level where only presidential intervention can provide a decisive solution.“At this point because we are in a crisis, I think the thing is gone beyond the minister for lands and natural resources. It needs the president himself to act on the challenges that is facing us to be able to deal decisively,” he said on Thursday.

He emphasized that in similar global crises, strong and immediate actions are taken, and he urged the President to address the nation with the same urgency and commitment as he did during the pandemic.