Galamsey: Our prayer is that God will touch the hearts of the people – Catholic Bishop

The Catholic Archdiocese of Accra, in partnership with the Conference of Major Superiors of Religious and Catholic Lay Faithful and Professionals, began an Environmental Prayer Protest Walk Against Galamsey.

This initiative aims to raise awareness about the devastating impact of illegal mining, popularly known as galamsey, and call for urgent government action to address this issue.

The primary goal of the protest is to advocate for a state of emergency concerning mining activities, particularly in areas surrounding water bodies, river buffers, and forest reserves.

National President for Peace Justice and Creation of the Catholic church of Ghana, Father Nicolas Azzineh, told TV3’s Noble Crosby Annan that “it is our hope that God will listen to our prayers, that he will touch the hearts of people so that they will change their way of looking at ecology or nature. Nature is created for us to take care of.”

The Bishops had stressed the responsibility of both Catholics and Ghanaians to safeguard the environment.

“We recognize our moral obligation to protect God’s creation and promote integral human development, not only in words but also in action. As the Latinists say, facta non verba” they remarked.

The Bishops called upon Catholics, Christians, and all well-meaning Ghanaians to take part in what they referred to as an “environmental prayer war against galamsey.” The initiative focuses on urging the government to declare a state of emergency. “The goal of this prayer walk is to raise awareness about the devastating effects of galamsey, advocate for the government to declare a state of emergency to stop all forms of mining activities, and allow for evaluation of the damage and healing of the land,” the Bishops explained.