“We wouldn’t be here if they had addressed illegal mining (Galamsey)” — Cudjoe
….Blames Akufo-Addo’s administration
Franklin Cudjoe, President of IMANI Africa, has blamed the former President Akufo-Addo administration for the August 6, 2025 helicopter crash that killed eight people.
He attributed the tragedy to the previous government’s failure to adequately tackle the illegal mining (galamsey) menace during its tenure, arguing that decisive action over the past five to seven years could have prevented the circumstances leading to the crash.
The crash occurred in the Adansi-Akrofuom District of the Ashanti Region as the helicopter was en route to the launch of the Responsible Co-operative Mining and Skills Development Programme (COMSDEP), an initiative aimed at combating illegal mining.
Among the victims were Defence Minister Dr. Edward Omane Boamah and Environment Minister Dr. Ibrahim Murtala Muhammed, along with military personnel and other officials.
Cudjoe expressed condolences to the bereaved families but emphasized that the failure to address galamsey effectively by the Akufo-Addo government partly contributed to the tragedy, highlighting that the nation could have avoided such a loss with better governance on this issue
According to him, this tragedy, involving victims traveling to launch an initiative against illegal mining (galamsey), could have been avoided if the government had taken significant steps to tackle illegal mining in the last five to seven years.
“The victims included two ministers and other officials en route to Obuasi for the launch of the Responsible Co-operative Mining and Skills Development Programme (COMSDEP), aimed at fighting illegal mining lost their lives.”
Cudjoe emphasized that if effective action had been taken earlier, “we wouldn’t be here,” highlighting the political and national loss resulting from the crisis surrounding illegal mining.
