The decision by Organised Labour to postpone the October 10 statewide strike in order to put pressure on the government to act decisively against illicit mining, or galamsey as it is locally known, which is still wreaking havoc on Ghana’s environment, has been vindicated.
One day before the strike was scheduled to start, on Wednesday, October 9, the leadership of Organised Labour announced the suspension.
Support for the strike was broad across many sectors, with many Ghanaians endorsing the group’s demand for more aggressive action to stop the environmental and social devastation caused by galamsey.
Significant criticism has been directed at the group’s decision to end the strike in various places; many have accused the leadership of caving in to outside pressure or jeopardizing the battle against galamsey.
Proponents of the cause had seen the walkout as an essential step toward holding the government responsible and pressing for prompt resolution of the problem.
The Trades Union Congress (TUC) Chairman, Bernard Owusu, supported the ruling, arguing that Organized Labor behaved honestly.
He said the suspension was a calculated measure to give the administration time to address the concerns expressed, not a show of weakness.
Owusu also gave the people the assurance that Organized Labour would not think twice about resuming its planned strike or using other kinds of protest to make sure the matter is handled if the government does not take action.
“We sent demands to the government and the government has made some provisions. It will be prudent as right-thinking people to rescind that decision because the government has met some of our demands and we think going forward, we have given an ultimatum and the government has come back to us and we think that we can monitor what the government wants to do going forward.
“So I don’t think there is any disappointment here. I believe that we have to be even applauded.”
