Attorney-General Orders EOCO to Probe NDC’s Abanga and Yamin Over Alleged Galamsey Involvement
On July 15, 2025, Attorney-General and Minister for Justice Dr. Dominic Akuritinga Ayine directed the Economic and Organised Crime Office (EOCO) to investigate National Democratic Congress (NDC) National Organiser Joseph Yamin and Third Vice Chairman Yakubu Abanga Alhassan for their alleged involvement in illegal mining, or galamsey, as part of a broader probe into unauthorized mining activities.
The directive, issued in a letter to EOCO’s Executive Director, cited “growing public concern, corroborated by media reports and intelligence,” and aligns with President John Dramani Mahama’s declaration of galamsey as a national emergency on the same day during his Western North Region ‘Thank You Tour.’
The investigation, mandated under the EOCO Act, 2010 (Act 804), responds to allegations from the Concerned Small Scale Miners Association of Ghana (CSSMAG), which claimed Yamin and Abanga were linked to a rogue anti-galamsey taskforce extorting legitimate miners in areas like Sekondi, Bekwai, Offinso, and Prestea.
The taskforce, allegedly dressed in military gear, is accused of invoking the names of these NDC executives to intimidate and extort, with some reports implicating National Security personnel, including a Colonel Tali. The Attorney-General instructed EOCO to collaborate with the Minerals Commission’s CEO and incorporate findings from Professor Kwabena Frimpong-Boateng’s 2021 report, which detailed high-level complicity in galamsey, including environmental damage to 34 of Ghana’s 288 forest reserves and water bodies like the Pra and Ankobra rivers.
Both Yamin and Abanga have denied the allegations. Yamin, speaking to Rawgist Online and Asempa FM, stated, “I have never engaged in mining,” urging security agencies to arrest anyone using his name for extortion.
Abanga, a licensed miner with concessions in Ashanti, Western, and Côte d’Ivoire, called the claims “baseless and malicious,” challenging accusers to provide evidence and exposing inconsistencies, such as a Mobile Money number linked to an alleged taskforce leader, Andrew Abban, being registered to Roland Agudogo. NDC Deputy General Secretary Mustapha Gbande defended Yamin, alleging internal party sabotage by NDC members seeking to undermine their positions, and threatened retaliation against accusers.
The directive has sparked political debate, with some viewing it as a bold move by Mahama’s administration to tackle galamsey impartially, given the NDC’s ruling status, while others, including X posts, question the evidence’s strength and suggest political motives.
The probe’s scope extends beyond Yamin and Abanga to other complicit individuals, with EOCO urged to act swiftly to address environmental devastation—costing Ghana $500 million annually—and restore governance in the mining sector, which contributes 17.1% to GDP.
