According to him, it is unfair that a Chinese national was freed for a similar offense, while Ghanaians remain incarcerated over the same offence.
The NDC flagbearer, therefore, pledged to grant amnesty to all jailed illegal miners if he’s elected President.
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Mahama said this when he addressed the chiefs and people of Odum Banso in the Western Region on Thursday.
“It’s sad. The government said it was fighting galamsey, and they arrested, prosecuted, and jailed Ghanaians who were engaged in that activity but left the Chinese woman [Aisha Huang],” he noted.
“Today, they are still in prison. That Chinese galamsey queen was arrested but left to go free. She was never prosecuted but our people are in jail suffering. When we come, we shall grant all those arrested and jailed some amnesty.
“They will come back to their homes and work. I believe that they have suffered enough, shown remorse for whatever wrong they committed. We will institute measures to check the operations of small scale mining.”
Mahama is currently on a tour of the Western region, where he made a stop at the Mpohor Constituency.