John Dramani Mahama, the flagbearer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), has committed to halting all mining activities in Ghana’s forest reserves if he wins the upcoming December 7 election.

 Addressing chiefs and elders in the Central Region, Mr. Mahama criticised the ongoing destruction of these vital areas for gold extraction, stressing the need for preservation.

“The destruction of forest reserves for gold must not be encouraged,” Mr. Mahama asserted.

He continued that: “We are going to stop all mining in forest reserves. Some of those trees existed when our ancestors were here. Some of those trees are 700 years old in those forest reserves. And our ancestors didn’t cut them. Our ancestors left them for us.”

Mr. Mahama emphasised the importance of safeguarding these ancient forests for future generations.

“We are going to cut them, and what are we going to leave for our children? Savannah, desertification, destroyed environment. And so we must preserve the forest. Yes, it is attractive to get as much gold as we can but that is like cutting your nose to spite your face.”