The Ghana National Association of Small Scale Miners (GNASSM) has sounded the alarm on the alarming rate of harassment, intimidation, and extortion faced by small-scale miners at the hands of some law enforcement agencies and politically exposed individuals.
They have, therefore, demanded immediate release of all excavators and other machinery seized from licensed small scale miners by the various anti-galamsey taskforce.
At a press conference held in Kumasi on Wednesday, July 16, 2025, the National Communications Director, Abdul-Razak Alhassan, revealed that despite operating within the law, small-scale miners are being targeted and terrorized by those meant to protect them. "We've had enough of these injustices," Alhassan declared. "We demand an end to the extortion, intimidation, and harassment." According to Alhassan, some police officers and security agencies, often acting under the influence of powerful political figures, storm mining sites, confiscate equipment, and demand illegal payments.
This, he said, undermines the government's efforts to formalize and expand small-scale mining.
