Highlighting Mahama's reputation for substantiated statements, Otoo took to social media on May 15, 2024, urging the public to await further details from Mahama’s campaign team regarding the implementation of the proposed policy.
“You should know by now that @JDMahama doesn’t talk basabasa, whatever he says is grounded in research.
“Even when I heard about AI in the fight against mining I had to raise eyebrow and then started reading.
“It’s fascinating and I cannot wait in the coming days for them to break it down cos we really need our water bodies cleaned. People are getting all kinds of diseases because of illegal mining and if investment in AI will help us identify illegal sites and deal with it to save lives… why not…”
With the 2024 elections looming, Mahama has pledged to leverage advanced technology to tackle the pressing issue of illegal mining, also known as "galamsey," which has led to severe environmental degradation and health concerns in various communities.
Addressing the 3rd Annual Transformational Dialogue on Small-scale Mining at the University of Energy and Natural Resources (UENR) in Sunyani on May 15, 2024, Mahama underscored that if elected, his administration would harness Artificial Intelligence (AI) to identify and monitor all small-scale mining and galamsey operations.
"We will introduce and encourage technological innovation to improve capacity for coordinated monitoring of the small-scale mining sector and reduce environmental impact.
"This will include using AI to locate all small-scale mining and galamsey operations, track excavators, and geo-fence all concessions to ensure mining operations are not conducted in unapproved areas, including water bodies,” he stated.
John Mahama will contest as flagbearer of the opposition National Democratic Congress for the third time in the 2024 general elections.