He said the inaction of previous political leaders could be due to the alleged involvement of some politicians and party stalwarts in the illegal act whose financial contributions sustained the parties.

Subsequently, Rev. Dr Osei has charged President Akufo-Addo to face the national menace head-on and nip the act in the bud.

He said  stringent action would prevent the wanton destruction of the nation’s natural resources that could have a devastating effect on the nation’s economy in diverse ways.

In a telephone interview with the Daily Graphic from London, Rev. Dr Osei said for a start, there was the need for the government to compel the illegal miners to fill all dug-outs, since they posed great danger to residents of such areas.

He explained that the ban on illegal mining should be sustained and those who indulge in the act dealt with drastically in order to deter others.

Dr Osei said after the ban, the government should put in place pragmatic measures and policies to regulate the operations of miners in the country to prevent the recurrence of galamsey practices and their effects.

Blame game

He wondered why after waiting for a very long time and allowing things to out of hand, we have turned round to blame the Chinese for indulging in illegal mining, saying although the Chinese were part of the galamsey menace, they could not be blamed alone, since it was Ghanaians who assisted them to get the requisite documents to operate in the country.