Kebbi govt suspends mining activities

Kebbi State Government has announced the suspension of mining activities currently ongoing across the state due to security challenges and a lack of corporate social responsibility on the part of mining companies.

In a press statement signed and made available to newsmen, by the Secretary to the State Government, Yakubu Bala Tafida also stated that the total absence of accurate revenue in the name of ecological tax and development levy for State and local government, forms a major basis for the suspension, nothing that significant numbers of miners do not possess requisite permit by the Federal Ministry of Mines and Solid Minerals.

“For this reason, the government of Kebbi State has made a difficult but inevitable decision to suspend all mining activities until further notice, this suspension is a precautionary measure aimed at ensuring the safety of both mining workers and the local communities” the statement read.

It read further that the government is not unmindful of the fact that mining is under an exclusive legislative list, yet this decision for the suspension was made after a thorough assessment of the current security situations in the mining sites which has raised serious concerns about the safety of those involved in the industries.

“The state government believes that it is of utmost importance to prioritize the protection and security of its citizens and to safely guide against converting the Mining fields as a veritable platform for breeding criminals and criminality by unauthorised foreigners and non-indigenes of questionable characters.”

The statement also noted that the current administration in the State had invested enormous resources in the improvement of the security situation across the state and would therefore ensure that we consolidate the gains of our investment by further safeguarding the safety and economic prosperity of indigenes in the localities where mining activities are taking place.

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