The University Teachers Association of Ghana (UTAG) has strongly condemned the reported attack on the Director of the National Anti-Illegal Mining Operations Secretariat (NAIMOS) and his team at Hwidiem in the Ahafo Region.
In a statement released on November 4, 2025, UTAG described the incident as a direct assault on Ghana’s collective fight against illegal mining, popularly known as galamsey.
Responding to reports alleging the involvement of the Member of Parliament for Asutifi North, Ebenezer Kwaku Addo, UTAG said it was “deeply troubling” that such an act could come from a public official entrusted with upholding the law.
“It is deeply troubling that such an act could emanate from a duty-bearer entrusted with upholding the law and advancing the national interest,” the statement read.
According to the association, the incident reflects the entrenched political interference, impunity, and elite complicity that continue to undermine Ghana’s anti-galamsey operations.
UTAG warned that illegal mining has caused irreversible environmental destruction, polluted water bodies, degraded farmlands, and endangered public health and food security.
“As academics, researchers, and citizens committed to sustainable national development, we cannot remain silent in the face of this existential threat,” the statement emphasized.
