Organised Labour yesterday announced an indefinite nationwide strike, effective October 10, to exert pressure on the government to take decisive actions on the increasing spate of illegal mining (galamsey) in the country.The decision, taken at an emergency meeting by the unions in Accra yesterday, follows the government's failure to meet a set of demands to clamp down on galamsey by September 30, 2024 which expired on Monday."We are therefore calling on all workers to stay home starting Thursday, October 10, 2024 until the government accede to our demands," a joint statement issued by Organised Labour said.

It was co-signed by the Secre­tary General of the Trades Union Congress (TUC) Ghana, Mr Joshua Ansah; the Chairman of Forum, Dr Isaac Bampoe Addo, and Deputy Secretary of the Ghana Federation of Labour, Kenneth Koomson.It is recalled that Organised Labour last month threatened to embark on a series of demonstra­tions and a nationwide strike if the President failed to meet some de­mands, including a declaration of a state of emergency on galamsey.In line with the provisions of the 1992 Constitution (Articles 31 and 31(4), it said the state of emergen­cy should include an order to halt all forms of mining (legal or illegal) in forest reserves and around water bodies.The unions also demanded immediate evacuation of all mining equipment in forest reserves and around water bodies and the deployment of the Police and the Military to enforce law on galam­sey.They asked that the security personnel should be given full or­ders to remove/destroy all mining equipment and other earth-moving equipment around river bodies and in the forest reserves.The statement said Organised Labour had followed the ongo­ing public-spirited discussions on illegal mining and its consequential impact on the country's forest cov­er, water bodies and ecology, health and other implications. "It is now clear to us as it is to all well-meaning Ghanaians that the menace of galamsey has reached a crisis proportion.

The depletion of our forest cover has never been this rapid.

The destruction of our water bodies is at an unprecedent­ed scale.