Two Chinese Nationals, Others Docked For Illegal Mining

By Ayodele Oni

Two Chinese Nationals are among those charged to court by the Federal Government for allegedly embarking on illegal mining activities in the two States of Kogi and Ondo.

They were arrested during a recent operation led by the Mining Marshall as part of ongoing efforts to sanitize the mining sector.

The operation, code-named  “Hayakin Kogo,” took place in the Ikah Community of Ankpa council area of Kogi State leading to the arrest of the two Chinese nationals and a Nigerian for mining activities in violation of existing mining regulations.

In another operation launched in Ondo state, the Mining Marshals also raided an illegal gold mining site in the Ogunlepa, Oluwa Forest Reserve, Odigbo local government  of Ondo State, where four suspects were arrested.

Report stated that these individuals, caught in the act of illegally mining of gold in a Government Reserved Area, confessed during interrogation that they lacked the necessary licenses or authorisation to carry out the operations.

The suspects from both Kogi and Ondo states have since been charged to the Federal High Court, Abuja.

The 2,570 Mining Marshals, specially trained and drawn from the ranks of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), is a brainchild of the Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dr. Dele Alake, as part of his seven-point agenda, hinged on sanitizing and reforming the mining sector.

The Minister reaffirmed the Federal Government’s commitment to eliminating illegal mining in the country by bolstering the operations of the Mining Marshals with the infusion of technology and imminent satellite monitoring of mining sites.

He urged those still involved in illegal activities in the mining sector to turn a new leaf and comply with the relevant sections of the Nigerian Minerals and Mining Act (NNMA) to regularise their operations, stressing that the resolve of the Federal Government to wielding the big stick is unflinching.