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Chief Executive Officer of the Ghana Gold Board (GoldBod), Sammy Gyamfi, has confirmed that Legislative Instrument (L.I.) 2462—which currently allows mining in forest reserves—will be revoked when Parliament reconvenes.
Speaking on Channel One TV’s The Point of View on Wednesday, April 23, Gyamfi emphasized the firm stance of President John Dramani Mahama and the National Democratic Congress (NDC) government against illegal mining, popularly known as galamsey.
Gyamfi explained that the delay in scrapping the legislation stems from ongoing legal discussions on whether to amend the law or repeal it entirely. Despite the debate, he assured that all necessary steps have been taken to move forward with its revocation.
“L.I. 2462 will be revoked by the NDC/Mahama government immediately Parliament resumes,” he stated. “There were legal issues as to whether or not it should be amended or revoked because there is a school of thought that revoking it could lead to a certain vacuum and that what had to be cured was the discretion or power given to the president to grant mining leases for people to mine in protected forest zones.
“Then there was another school of thought that said, look, let’s revoke the entire law, even if we get a vacuum, we can come up with a new L.I… but the L.I. 2462 is poisonous. It should go in its entirety. Those who made that argument have won—we are a listening government,” Gyamfi added.
He also revealed that Attorney General Dr. Dominic Ayine has confirmed that a bill to repeal the controversial legislation has been prepared and is ready to be presented once Parliament returns from recess.
Gyamfi’s remarks signal a decisive shift in policy, reaffirming the Mahama-led administration’s commitment to environmental protection and responsible mining practices.
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