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Coalition accuses Organised Labour leaders of betraying public trust in galamsey fight, calls for their resignation

By Eric Nana Yaw Kwafo
29 Oct 2024
Secretary-General of the Trades Union Congress (Part of Organised Labour), Joshua Ansah

The Coalition of Professionals against the Leadership of Organised Labour is publicly calling for the resignation of key leaders in Organised Labour, accusing them of betraying the trust of Ghanaians by prematurely suspending a planned strike aimed at combating illegal mining (galamsey).

In a press release, the Coalition expressed its disappointment in Organised Labour's decision, stating that it undermines the fight against galamsey.

The Coalition’s main criticism was directed at Mr. Joshua Ansah, the General Secretary of the Trade Union Congress (TUC), and Mr. Isaac Bampoe Addo, the Chairman of CLOGSAG, whom it accused of negotiating a "diabolical deal" with the government, which led to the strike’s suspension on October 9.

The Coalition argues that these leaders went against the collective agreement of Organised Labour and betrayed the very people they represent.

The Coalition pointed out the troubling inconsistency shown by some unions, including the Ghana Medical Association (GMA), the Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwives Association (GRNMA), and the Government Hospital Pharmacists Association (GHOSPA), which initially supported the strike but later distanced themselves, citing essential service obligations.

The Coalition describes their actions as “hypocrisy of the highest order,” questioning why these groups had initially threatened to strike if they were unwilling to follow through.

The Coalition has outlined seven demands, including calls for Mr. Ansah and Mr. Bampoe Addo to render public apologies, answer pointed questions regarding their actions, and submit their resignations.

“The leadership of organized labour as a matter of urgency render an unqualified apology to the general members of the labour associations and the general public, for this diabolic, incompetent, feeble and compromised leadership exhibited on October 9, 2024, in our collective fight against the galamsey menace which is agreed by all as an existential threat to humanity and our environment.

“The secretary of TUC, Mr. Joshua Ansah and the Chairman of the forum, Mr. Issac Bampoe Addo should immediately tender their resignation letters as leaders of organized labour,” parts of the release said.

It also demands that the interim TUC executives report weekly on the government’s progress against illegal mining, and it calls on other unions, like the Health Services Workers Union, NAGRAT, and GNAT, to join in renewed efforts to hold the government accountable.

Below is a copy of the press release.
Date: 28th October, 2024
PRESS RELEASE
“BETRAYAL OF PUBLIC TRUST: ORGANISED LABOUR LEADERSHIP MUST RESIGN IN BLOCK”-COALITION OF PROFESSIONALS AGAINST LEADERSHIP OF ORGANIZED LABOUR

ALL MEDIA HOUSES
The members of the Coalition of Professionals against the Leadership of Organized Labour are flabbergasted and stroked by the unilateral decision by Mr. Joshua Ansah and Mr. Issac Bampoe to suspend the planned strike by organized labour at the eleventh hour, to the dismay of members of organized labour and some forward-looking labour union leaderships such as UTAG. This unfortunate development is undoubtedly one of the saddest decisions in the history of Mother Ghana. This happened when Mr Ansah, the secretary of TUC and the Chairman of CLOGSAG Mr Bampoe planned with their paymasters, with a prepared speech and invited the media to execute this diabolic and shoddy deal, which was done and dusted on the blind side of their colleague's independent like-minded persons like Prof. Gyampo, the President of the UG UTAG branch and other labour unions.

It was public knowledge that on Wednesday, 11th September 2024, Organised Labour issued a statement demanding that President Nana Addo Akufo-Addo declare a state of emergency on illegal mining, commonly known as galamsey or it proceeds on an indefinite strike. It indicated that the declaration must include an order to: halt all forms of mining, legal or illegal in forest reserves and around water bodies, immediate evacuation of all mining equipment from those areas and set up specialized courts to fast-track the prosecutions of alleged criminals who will defy the directives or on expiration of the deadline, prompt annulment of LI 2462 and withdraw all licenses already granted to companies for prospecting and mining in forests, protected areas, and near water bodies. The statement further called on the police and the military personnel to go all out with full authority to dismantle and destroy all mining and earth-moving equipment near rivers and forest areas. The statement was jointly signed by Joshua Ansah, the General Secretary of the Trade Union Congress (TUC), Mr. Issac Bampoe Addo, Chairman of the forum, and Kenneth Koomson, Deputy Secretary of the Ghana Federation of Labour.

Consequently, the leadership of Organized Labour declared that if “the government did not address those concerns by the end of September 2024, Organised Labour would stage series of protests and a nationwide strike to press for the demands; and therefore, called on all well-meaning Ghanaians to join organized labour in the fight against this menace. Galamsey must stop now”, it said.

This position espoused above was the decision of organized labour and therefore embraced by all labour unions in unison and with a common voice. This moved the members of the various unions and the general public to support the action of the leadership of organized labour wholeheartedly with all the psychological stress till labour finally declared their intended strike on Tuesday, October 2024; starting from 10th October 2024 and directly called on all well-meaning Ghanaians to support this worthy cause. The general public and the generality of organized labour considered this call genuine and therefore gave it all the seriousness it deserved as the last resort to ending Galamsey in the country. Indeed, Galamsey having seen an existential threat to all of us as members of organized labour and the general public, and also this fight having led by the leadership of organized labour there was growing public confidence that the action of organized labour would undoubtedly pressure the government to declare a state of emergency as a first step to ending the galamsey menace in the country. Subsequently, the leadership of organized labour finally declared this intended strike when the government failed to implement the demands of organized labour, as indicated above. This was after the abortive engagement meetings with the 5-member ministerial committee set up by the President of the Republic of Ghana, His Excellent Nana Addo Dankwa Akuffo-Addo and subsequently the president himself. These engagement meetings were organized by the government to convince the leadership of organized labour to call off their intended strikes and not to see to the implementation of the demands of organized labour. This was confirmed and demonstrated by some big wicks of NPP such as Dr. Nana Ayew Afriyie, the Member of Parliament for Effiduase-Asokore who is also the health committee chairman in parliament; who is on record to have said “that New Patriotic Party (NPP) government would not ban mining activities and will not stop galamsey today or tomorrow” in the heat of organized labour and government tassel on ending galamsey in the country. To them, paying heed to organized labour’s demands will lead to the NPP losing a number of their parliamentary seats within the galamsey enclave, as happened in the 2020 presidential and parliamentary elections. Unfortunately, winning the 2024 elections is more important to the lives of Ghanaians, as demonstrated by the government. This amongst others showed the government's lack of inertia to fight galamsey, especially when it is left with a few months to 2024 general elections.

Regrettably, having given the government a long month to really demonstrate it resolved to end the debilitating menace, the government went to sleep and dared organized labour to do the worst. Surprisingly, within that period over eleven Small Scale Mining licenses were given to various companies allegedly associated with members of the ruling party. However, to the dismay of many on Tuesday 2nd October, 2024, organized labour failed to declare its intended strike immediately; but announced October 10, 2024 as the day to begin it. This brought shivers down the pants of many wise men and women who started hesitating about the possibility of this strike and positing that organized labour was only playing to the sensibilities and emotions of Ghanaians. Possibly, intentionally created an opportunity to trade off with the government for their parochial interests.

As members of the coalition of professionals against Organised Labour, our biggest disappointments came when our secretary of TUC, Mr Ansah who from his physical appearance should have been resting at home and Mr Bampoe who outlived his usefulness in the labour front on Wednesday, October 9, 2024, played “chaskele” with government and brokered a deal behind the seen to suspend our much-anticipated nationwide strike slated for Thursday, October 10, 2024; even without the knowledge and decision of some key members of organized labour, thus the likes Prof. Gyampo as he articulated after the strike was suspended. This was a meeting they attended with a prepared speech to suspend the strike, which was actually read to the media after their so-called assurances by the government to tackle illegal mining. The statement further indicated that organised labour noted that the government had taken considerable steps, including ramping up the Operational Halt initiative, led by the Ghana Armed Forces, to combat illegal mining activities in forest reserves and that the decision was made to allow Labour to observe the government’s implementation of these measures.

This incompetent, weird, detestable, politically-tainted and ill-thought-through decision of Mr. Ansah who was supposed to be resting at home, but hanged on because of such crass supper incompetent deals was also supported by Mr. Bampoe, who has already failed CLOGSAG due to such opaque and shoddy deals.

This unethical behaviour has eroded trust and caused harm to the union’s reputation. They have not only compromised their position, distorted decisions, and eroded trust within the rank and file of the union in particular and Ghanaians in general, but have also demonstrated that they were sponsored by President Nana and his cohorts as their secret disciples to champion their diabolic agenda to further inflict more harm to Ghanaians with hardship, insecurity and injustice. Ghanaians and the entire membership had faith in them, but they have demonstrated that “There is no just God who governs the earth righteously but a God of lies who bears witness against the innocent’’. May they not prosper, if indeed they took money and threw dust into the eyes of Ghanaians.

Consequently, we the members of the coalition against organized leadership wish to ask the leadership of organized labour these twelve harmless questions. Since when has the government not assured the general public of its resolve to tackle illegal mining? What practical considerable steps were taken by the government on 9th October, 2024 to which organised labour leadership has assessed and affirmed its practicality before calling off its nationwide strike? Was the state of emergency declared by the government on all waterbodies and forest reserves, which were the key demands of organized labour? Which of the demands of organized labour has the government started implementing since the forty-day moratorium given to the government? Is it the first time the government has sent security forces to the galamsey communities to halt the activities of galamsey? How is organized labour going to monitor the situation closely and remain committed to protecting workers’ rights and addressing the illegal mining crisis, when some members of labour are neck-deep in the activities of galamsey? Granted government has accepted all the demands presented to it and even started with the implementation on 9th October 2024, wasn’t it a matter of common sense for the leadership of organized labour to adopt a wait-and-see strategy by declaring at least a week strike, having known the arrogant stance of President Nana Addo and his government over everything in this country? If organized labour leadership's intention was just to pressure the government to heighten its fight against as stated in their already prepared speech before meeting the government on October 9 2024, why go on to declare an indefinite strike on 2nd October 2024 after the expiration of the one-month moratorium to government and not adopting the lesser means of showing our displeasure to the government lugworm attitude in tackling galamsey? Whether Mr. Ansah and Mr. Bampoe have sighted the annulment of LI 2462 in memo that captured urgent Government business used to recall parliament and whether they are satisfied with the move of Government so far? How will the leadership of organized labour convince anybody that they did not use us, as members of the associations and the general public as a conduit to launch their line their pockets? Again, if the leadership of organized labour knew they just needed the government’s assurance of fighting the galamsey menace, why create the impression that you want to see to the end of galamsey in the country and keeping all of us under needless stress, depression and psychological trauma for over a month?

Also, it is critical to put on record our disappointment at the Ghana Medical Association (GMA), the Ghana Registered Nurses and Midwives Association (GRNMA) and the Government Hospital Pharmacists Association (GHOSPA) who all indicated they supported the strike, but inexplicably distanced themselves from the industrial action, choosing to continue providing essential healthcare services. Unfortunately, the last time we checked you cannot eat your cake and have it. This is the hypocrisy of the highest order. Since when have you recognised that your services are essential and therefore will continue providing services and not joining the strike, even before the leadership of organized labour suspended the strike? So, when it is about your narrow interests, your services are no longer essential and therefore can wait for you to exercise your liberty to declare strike, no matter the consequences? Then why did the leadership of GMA, GRNMA and GHOSPA in the first place join organized labour to threaten the government with a strike if the leadership of the government failed to yield to our demand since suddenly, they having woken up from their perpetual slumber and now in their right senses to know they are critical and essential service providers and therefore do not prescribe to strikes? Unfortunately, when we let our political colouration overshadow our thinking and direct our paths to walk, this is where our decisions will take us, but to the great disappointment of the larger members of the associations. Bryan Chapel stated that “the church’s greatest mistakes occur when the people of God honour what a leader says without examining that instruction in the light of the scriptures’’ thus we shall all suffer the consequences of our actions today and the generation unborn. Indeed, a bad leader can take a good staff and destroy it, causing the best employees to flee and the remainder to lose all motivation. You must also be prepared to reap what you have sown by your action.

The coalition of professionals against organised labour leadership expresses our profound disappointment with the decision of Mr Ansah, Mr Bampoe and other leaders of organized labour who called off the nationwide strike aimed at compelling the government to take swift and decisive action against these existential threats and the canal for attraction of terrorists into the country, in addition to its negative health and environmental implications. This decision undermines the collective efforts of Ghanaians to protect our environment and secure a sustainable future for our nation, and therefore, the betrayal of public trust.

Therefore, the Coalition of Professionals against the leadership of Organized Labour makes the following demands to the leadership of organized labour:

  1. The leadership of organized labour as a matter of urgency render an unqualified apology to the general members of the labour associations and the general public, for this diabolic, incompetent, feeble and compromised leadership exhibited on October 9, 2024, in our collective fight against the galamsey menace which is agreed by all as an existential threat to humanity and our environment.
  2. The secretary of TUC, Mr Joshua Ansah, the Chairman of the forum, Mr Issac Bampoe Addo, Dr Frank Serebour, Mrs Perpetual Ofori Ampofo and Nathan Coompson as a matter of urgency provide answers to the thirteen questions asked above and remember that ‘’Evil leaders fail because of their wickedness.
  3. The secretary of TUC, Mr. Joshua Ansah and the Chairman of the forum, Mr. Issac Bampoe Addo should immediately tender their resignation letters as leaders of organized labour.
  4. The acting secretary of TUC should take steps to commence forensic investigations to unearth what happened on October 9, 2024; leading to the suspension of the indefinite strike declared by organized labour.
  5. Mr. Joshua Ansah should take immediate steps to retire from public service as he surpassed the retirement age of sixty years, per our laws
  6. The interim executives of TUC should brief labour weekly through press conferences on the implementation of the government blueprint against illegal mining, since they are now part of the government team in charge of seeing to the rollout of the blueprint.
  7. We are given the leadership of organized labour a week's ultimatum to see to the implementation of the above demands

Certainly, the failure of organized labour leadership to carry out these demands will force the coalition of professionals against organized labour to use all legally acceptable means to press home these demands.

Irrefutable, organized labour failure to stand firm against Galamsey and their decision to call off the strike demonstrate a lack of commitment to the welfare of Ghanaians in totality and the betrayal and breach of the fiduciary relationship they have with us, as members of organized labour.

Consequently, the coalition of professionals against organized labour wishes to use this medium to thank UTAG for not only threatening to embark on strike but declaring a strike across all fifteen public universities on October 10, 2024, to put pressure on the government to temporary ban mining, especially Small-Scale Mining and galamsey in the country. Our thanks also go to the Roman Catholic Diocesan priests for their prayer walk and all well-meaning Ghanaians who joined them for the walk. We also wish to use this platform to call on all like-minded labour unions, such as the Health Service Workers Union (HSWU), NAGRAT, GNAT, the Public Utility Workers Union, and the General Agricultural Workers Union amongst others be bold and join the strike as the menace of galamsey still lingers on; to pressurize government to launch a comprehensive approach to tackle this existential threat once and for all.

Together, let us hold our leaders accountable and push for a future where our natural resources are preserved, and our communities can thrive in a safe and healthy environment. The theme of Proverbs 29:2 is who rules matters: ‘When the righteous are in authority the people rejoice but when the wicked beareth rule, the people mourn….’ May God save us from the wicked.

Thank you all.
Conveners:

  1. SULEMAN ISSAHAQUE SULEGA: 0244898652
  2. SEIDU JAADI: 0572593390
  3. MOHAMMED NAEEM: 0244824987

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