The Nasarawa State government has banned children below 18 years from participating in mining activities across the state and has warned against illegal and underage mining following the death of 37 suspected illegal miners in custody in Niger State.
The commissioner for environment, natural resources and mining, Dr. Margaret Elayo, issued the warning on Friday in Lafia while reacting to the tragedy in Minna.
Reacting to the incident, Dr. Elayo said she received disturbing video clips of illegal mining activities in Nasarawa from her permanent secretary at about 9:30pm on Wednesday, which prompted her press briefing.
“I felt it was necessary for me to speak on it so that we can be guarded and use some of these challenges that other people are experiencing… so that the same mistakes will not be repeated in Nasarawa State,” she said.
While commiserating with the Niger State government over the deaths, the commissioner said illegal mining remained “very, very unacceptable regardless of who you are” in Nasarawa State.
She accused some investors of bypassing state procedures and abusing exploration licenses. According to her, although mining licenses are issued by the Federal Cadastral Office in Abuja, every operator is mandated to report to the State Ministry of Environment, Natural Resources and Mining to open a file and be properly guided to host communities for awareness and engagement.
Dr. Elayo condemned the practice where holders of exploration licenses engage in full-scale mining, describing it as illegal, hazardous and exploitative.
“Most of these investors take advantage of the exploration license and start mining which is illegal… they involve teenagers and some of this exploration has something to do with chemicals which you expose our little children to,” she said.
She expressed shock over video clips showing children working bare footed and without protective gear inside deep, unstable mining pits.
The commissioner disclosed that the government had already identified illegal sites in Uke and Wamba local government areas among others marked for sanction. She also raised alarm that some operators were circulating chemically-polluted water back into host communities.
“I’ve gone to some mining sites that I shut down… We will arrest you, we will lock you up… what you cannot do to your soul you should not do to others,” Dr. Elayo warned.
She called on traditional rulers, stakeholders and residents to support government efforts by reporting illegal mining activities in their domains.
“If you see something, you say something irrespective of who they are… we want your growth, we want your stability,” she added.
Dr. Elayo urged all investors to comply with Nasarawa State environmental laws and mining guidelines as enunciated by the administration of Governor Abdullahi Sule.
