‘Powerful’ Nigerians Behind Illegal Mining Activities, Terrorism In Country: Solid Minerals Minister

Solid Minerals Minister Henry Dele Alake alleged that "powerful" Nigerians are involved in illegal mining and terrorism activities in the country.

"One pernicious discovery that we have made is that a lot of these banditry, terrorism and insecurity that we associate with this sector are actually sponsored by illegal miners," Alake said while defending the budget estimates for solid minerals before the House Committee on Tuesday, The Cable reported.

He clarified that these illegal activities are not done by "artisanal miners" or people who "pick gold on the ground" but by "heavy and powerful individuals."

He stressed that these powerful people are Nigerians and not foreigners.

"You can see foreigners as symptoms, but they are not the disease. Nigerians are the powers behind those foreigners that you see on the streets. We are identifying them and employing various strategies, both kinetic and non-kinetic," the minister said. "The insecurity in the mining areas is sponsored by illegal mines and these are powerful individuals in the society who are Nigerians."

Alake urged illegal miners to register with the cooperatives and then work "legitimately and earn a legitimate living."

"Because every Nigerian has a right to life and necessities and so if the government cannot provide these necessities, we cannot push them into the bush," he added.

Once the illegal miners are registered, the government can easily track royalties and taxes. The minister said the government lost royalties and taxes because it was impossible to track individual unregistered miners across the country.

"We strive to legitimize them and make them responsible citizens of Nigeria," he said.

At the meeting, the minister pointed out that the N24 billion budget allocated to his ministry was insufficient. He urged it to be raised to N250 billion.

The minister promised to return the revenue in trillions.

"If we are given that amount of money, I can tell you the target that this sector will contribute to the GDP of this country will be outstanding. In a couple of years, it will dwarf what we are deriving from oil," Alake assured the committee.