The Leader and flagbearer of the Liberal Party of Ghana (LPG), Kofi Akpaloo, has called on Organised Labour to rescind on their decisions to embark on a nationwide strike as a way of registering their displeasure over the President’s reluctance to declare a state of emergency over the activities of illegal mining, popularly referred to as galamsey.
As a way of re-echoing the effect of galamsey on the environment and the lives of the people living in mining communities, Organised lLabour, through their leadership, has announced an indefinite industrial strike on October 10, 2024.
Organized Labour expressed disappointment over the government’s efforts to addressing the menace and its environmental impact, demanding a declaration of a state of emergency, the revocation of L.I. 2462, and the deployment of the military to forest areas and water bodies to curb the ongoing destructions.
However, the flagbearer of LPG, Kofi Akpaloo thinks otherwise.
In an interview with Citi News monitored by Ahotor FM, Kofi Akpaloo stated that, the timing of the proposed strike is wrong, citing the number of months left for the December 7 general elections.
He urged the leadership of the Labour Unions to engage in dialogue with the government to find a resolution, rather than taking drastic actions.
He said, “Two months to an election and you are leading this, then it means you just want the government to go. That is all. I want to be President, but I don’t want to be President in that way. I want to be President by having a positive mentality.”
“I want to have peace of mind to rule, to deliver. I don’t want a situation in which I want to see somebody going down and then I benefit from the person going down. No, I don’t want.”
“Forget about this strike action or whatever, suspend it. After the election, if you want to solve the problem, we solve the problem. But if you go on strike for let’s say two weeks and then the government says, okay, I am sending an army to go ahead [to tackle galamsey] and then after that they [illegal miners] go back, what are you going to do? Don’t rush into solving a problem, you have to sit down,” he added.
Source: Richard Nana Appiah Kubi/Ahotoronline.com
