The Concerned Drivers Association of Ghana (C-DAG) has urged President John Mahama to take decisive steps to end illegal mining, popularly known as galamsey, and to commission a forensic audit into the controversial Gold- for- Oil initiative by the immediate New Patriotic Party(NPP) administration.

In a strongly worded statement signed by its National Chairman, William Osei, the group criticised what it described as “endless stakeholder meetings at the Jubilee House,” arguing that such engagements had not yielded tangible results in curbing galamsey.

C-DAG insisted that the roadmap for addressing the menace already exists in the report authored by Prof. Kwabena Frimpong-Boateng, the former chairman of the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Illegal Mining (IMCIM).

“The blueprint for action has long been provided in the detailed report by Prof. Frimpong-Boateng.

We strongly call on the President to revisit, publish, and act on the recommendations, which expose the rot, high-level complicity, and systemic failures fueling galamsey,” the group stated.

It warned that anything short of decisive implementation would amount to “a cosmetic exercise that insults the intelligence of Ghanaians and prolongs the destruction of our water bodies, forests, and livelihoods.”

Beyond illegal mining, the drivers’ union demanded an independent forensic audit of the Gold- for- Oil programme introduced under the previous NPP administration.

According to the Association, the deal was riddled with corruption, lack of transparency, and abuse of state resources.

“The Ghanaian people deserve to know the truth, and those found culpable must be held accountable,” the statement said.

C-DAG argued that drivers and transport operators bore the brunt of rising fuel costs and poor economic management, stressing that they could no longer remain silent in the face of alleged corruption and misgovernance.

“We remind the President that Ghanaians are watching closely, and history will judge leaders not by the speeches they make but by the bold decisions they take in the interest of the nation,” the group concluded.