In a recent interview with one of our correspondents, Honorable Mohamed Bangura, a member of the Sierra Leone Parliament’s Delegation to the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Parliament, recommended instituting capital punishment to deter illegal mining activities in West African countries.

During a parliamentary seminar on illegal mining and its implications in the ECOWAS region, Honorable Bangura identified lack of political willingness as the primary reason for the continued perpetration of illicit mining activities. He attributed the collusion of African leaders with illegal mining operations as the leading obstacle to significantly enhancing and redirecting nationally owned resources into a country’s economy.

Honorable Bangura emphasized that adequate laws exist to curb the illegal trade, but the absence of capital punishment, he claimed, remains an ultimate necessity to prevent rampant undemocratic upheavals, a byproduct of Western interference, sponsored by Western exploitation. His recommendations stem from his belief that capital punishment would serve as a deterrent to illegal mining activities and promote the rule of law in the region.