A leading member of the Movement for Change, Ebo Buckman, has issued a scathing open letter to President John Dramani Mahama, accusing Ghana’s political leadership of decades of failure in confronting illegal mining, widely known as galamsey.
Writing “not as a partisan, but as a deeply concerned citizen,” Buckman decried what he called the inaction, complicity, and politicization that have allowed a national environmental catastrophe to spiral out of control.
“The ticking time bomb we’re sleeping on—environmental destruction masked as galamsey—is no longer a local issue. It is a test of national leadership, and sadly, we’re failing,” he wrote.
Buckman asserted that illegal mining has morphed into something far more dangerous and sophisticated, describing it as “environmental terrorism.” He argued that the real actors fuelling the destruction are not impoverished youth with shovels, but well-connected individuals shielded by power.
“Let’s not deceive ourselves anymore. What we’re witnessing today is no longer galamsey, it is environmental terrorism,” he stated. “The real perpetrators are not the struggling youth… They are the shadowy figures behind the scenes: foreigners, politicians, businessmen and women.”
He further urged President Mahama and the broader political establishment to admit their role in enabling this crisis and to take genuine, far-reaching action. Buckman criticized the proliferation of task forces and pledges over the years, calling them largely performative and ineffective.
With Ghana’s rivers, forests, and agricultural lands steadily vanishing under the weight of illegal mining, Buckman warned that the country is on the brink of irreversible damage. He called on President Mahama to take bold and uncompromising steps, not just as a political leader, but as a steward of the nation’s future.
Buckman’s letter adds to mounting public pressure on the government to take decisive action against galamsey, which continues to wreak havoc on the environment despite years of public outcry.
