Galamsey fight: 'Withdraw military and use suicide drones to monitor, kill galamseyers' — St. Sark urges gov't

Controversial clergyman and General Overseer of Open Arms Ministry, St. Sark, has sparked outrage with a radical proposal to end illegal mining (galamsey) in Ghana, suggesting the deployment of suicide drones programmed to “shoot to kill.”

Speaking to journalists on Wednesday at his church auditorium in Kumasi, St. Sark said the government should abandon the traditional methods of fighting illegal mining, including the use of military forces or specialized task forces, and instead deploy loitering munitions, commonly referred to as suicide drones, to patrol mining zones.

"As they loiter at the mining sites, they will crash into any target involved in the menace," he said, insisting that this tactic would wipe out illegal mining activities within months.

He dismissed current state efforts as ineffective and wasteful. "They are waste of time, energy and state resources," St. Sark declared, referring to the involvement of the military and anti-galamsey task forces.

Doubling down on his extreme stance, he added: "No need for soldiers, whatever. Just a suicide drone will end everything."

Expressing frustration with the persistence of illegal mining, St. Sark said he was unimpressed with the government’s strategies, criticizing them as insufficient and unconvincing. "Because people are still doing it," he remarked.

As an alternative, should the government reject the drone approach, he urged a more aggressive policy of destroying the equipment used by illegal miners. "If government thinks he is not okay with the suicide drone approach, he should alternatively burn the excavators," he stressed.

He warned that failure to do so would embolden galamsey operators. "It will encourage them to do more of the illegality. Their excavators should be burnt including cars used by the illegal miners in their operations. Before burning each excavator, salt must be put in the engine," he said.

St. Sark's comments have already begun to stir public debate, with many describing the suggestions as dangerous and extreme. However, they reflect growing frustration in some quarters over the government’s inability to decisively end illegal mining across the country.