Pulpit and Politics: Pastors Speak on Galamsey and the National Cathedral

Two of Ghana’s most prominent pastors have recently entered debates over issues that reach well beyond the pulpit: illegal mining and the construction of the National Cathedral. Archbishop Nicholas Duncan-Williams has urged prayer against galamsey, while Dr Mensa Otabil has called for the cathedral project to be built immediately as an ambitious work to the glory of God.

Duncan-Williams, the General Overseer of Action Chapel International, focused on the environmental damage caused by illegal mining during a recent church service. He described Ghana as operating under a “veil and a spell of money, politics, and manipulations of fetish and demonic powers” that concealed the forces supporting the galamsey crisis. He called on Ghanaians to pray for the restoration and healing of polluted water bodies, forests and degraded farmland.

“We are praying concerning the healing of our water bodies and the land, that our water bodies and our land will not be poisoned through this galamsey,” he said. He also warned of the agricultural consequences of contaminated water and soil, including barren land, chemical contamination of crops and food shortages. He specifically urged prayers for the Minister of Agriculture and the agricultural sector.

His appeal drew strong criticism on social media, where many Ghanaians argued that prayer alone could not address illegal mining. They said spiritual intervention needed to be matched by enforcement against lawbreaking, corruption and political complicity. The article argues that pastors have a moral and civic role when public policy threatens human dignity, public health, livelihoods and the environment, but that their interventions become problematic when they serve, or appear to serve, partisan political interests. It also says discussion of the National Cathedral should include financial transparency, institutional integrity and the ethical use of public funds.

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We are praying concerning the healing of our water bodies and the land, that our water bodies and our land will not be poisoned through this galamsey.