Like the award-winning Holywood movie, Blood Diamond, ISAAC SHOBAYO reports on the activities of illegal miners in Plateau State and how their operations are creating death and wealth and enticing young people to drop out of schools.
MINING is synonymous with Plateau State. Before the country’s independence in 1960, European miners, in particular, were actively engaged in business on the Plateau. Mining plus the largely temperate weather of Plateau made the area a very attractive to the white entrepreneurs. In essence, minerals resources such as tin, columbite, lead iron ore, among others, were exploited in large quantity to the advantage of the European miners.
But the mining activities left various communities devastated. The excavated sites have left huge manholes some of which have also been overfilled with water and become dangerous. What the locals now call mining ponds with their contaminated water dot many local government areas across the state.
In Plateau today, apart from being confronted by gullies and mining ponds or vastly ravaged landscape that has become dangerous to both human and animals, mining has also caused some certain social dysfunction in the state. For instance, many of the residents, especially the youth, have abandoned schools. Some of them learning or who are engaged in one form of vocation or another have left such in favour of mining, which they believe would bring them quick money or lead them to wealth. These youths, as well as many others illegal miners can be found in places like Barakin Ladi, Riyom, Jos South, Wase and Bokkos local government areas of the state.
A deadly business, but unreported
But how do these illegal miners operate? What type of equipment do they use to carry out their operations? Sunday Tribune investigations revealed that the mining is carried out in unprofessional manner and in an unsafe environment by these individuals. Indeed, quite a large number of these illegal miners, it was revealed, had died during excavations. One of the sources put the figure of those who had died on the business at over 100. “Many in this illegal business have been buried alive in the process of extracting minerals resources from the soil.”
In Waduruk village in Jos South Local Government Area of Plateau State, for instance, seven youths digging for precious stones died when the earth caved in on them. Eye witness claimed that the group of illegal miners were digging well beneath the surface when the mine suddenly caved in and buried seven of them alive. Only those working at the edge or the surface survived with various degrees of injury.
Also, recently in Barakin-Ladi Local Government Area of the state, five miners, aged to 18 to 25 were trapped when the mine collapsed on them. Though the other miners made frantic attempts to rescue their colleagues, they could only rescue one of the victims. The remaining four were not that lucky.
According to Sunday Tribune findings such tragic occurrences involving miners are becoming regular in virtually all illegal mining sites across the state. But not even the smell of death has been able to dissuade the young men, and sometimes women, who join in the dig for precious stones on a daily basis. Interestingly, as rampant as cases of death in the business becoming, no one is making official report of the deaths. Those involved are sceptical of reporting such incident to the law enforcement agents for fear of arrest.
One of the illegal miners who identified himself as Bala Tanko at Waduruku village, where seven people died, disclosed that since the beginning of this year no fewer than 18 illegal miners had died at the site.
“This is an illegal business; we cannot report this to the police or government. More so when the bodies of victims are hardly recovered [when buried alive], and so what are we going to tell the police?
“The rate of death is minimal during the dry season, but often gets worse during the rainy season. We often advise people not to go [dig] too deep during the rainy season,” Tanko narrated.
A booming business…
In Foron district of Barakin Ladi local government, illegal mining sites dot every nook and cranny of the area. Mining is done without molestation or fear of being arrested by the law enforcement agencies. Foron looks like your typical market, with businessmen and women buying the precious stones from the miners.
Though none of the miners was willing to speak with Sunday Tribune when it visited the community, investigation revealed that the booming business activities were just a reprieve. The business is equally lined with blood. It was learnt that many of the miners were usually not so lucky to sell their find, having lost their lives in the process.
Solomon Dachom, who trades in tin and other minerals, said he had witnessed a mining incident in Bokkos Local Government Area in which eight persons died. “The moment it covers them, their remains are hardly recovered,” he said, confirming that the record of death is increasing and could get worse during rainy season.
Apart from the damage these miners cause to the environment, their activities have also become a threat to the prevailing peace in the state. Recently, 10 people were killed in a clash involving two groups of illegal miners at Gero village in Gyel district of Jos South Local Government Area of the state.
Sunday Tribune learnt that miners from Gero had arrived to occupy a lucrative mining site around their village, but met miners from Bassa, a nearby local government already working on the site. A fight had ensued and six people were killed instantly while another four were later found at the mining site.
This is a regular occurrence at various mining sites in the state, as illegal miners now operate like cartel and militias. They are often armed to the teeth with various dangerous weapons to wade off intruders nad/or trespassers who might want to challenge and disrupt their business.
Piqued by the violence associated with their activities, Plateau State Government recently gave an immediate order to the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) to shoot any illegal miner at sight. The order was based on the activities of illegal miners around Lamingo dam in Jos East local government. The dam has been a hive of activities for illegal miners for quite some time. The governor’s order was sequel to the death of a miner who drowned at the dam while trying to swim across the dam to evade arrest by the security agents.
Child miners and do or die …
Sunday Tribune findings further revealed that illegal mining has affected enrolment into secondary school in the state, thus fuelling increase in the number of dropouts. In most of the villages where these illicit acts are taking place, young ones have since abandoned the classrooms for the mining sites. They can be seen all over these sites, actively participating in the illegal business.
Joseph Badung, a secondary school teacher in Riyom local government, attributed the influx of youths into the illegal business to the economic recession in the country. According to him, though dangerous, it is an easy way of making money.
“Some of the youth you see on mining sites are either secondary school dropouts or those who migrated to the village due to lack of job and find solace in this illegal and dangerous work. The government needs to wade in because many of them are dying at these sites as a result of the crude method they are using,” said Badung.
An education officer at Jos South local government, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, told Sunday Tribune that child miners abound in the council, saying they most of them dropped out of school with the full support of their parents, some of whom are also in the business.
Speaking on the incidence of death at mines and child miners, National Chairman, Progressive Miners Association, Mr Sunday Ekozin, said death at illegal mining sites either in Plateau State or in any other parts of the country is not a new thing. Though he agreed that the rate of death might have gone up in recent times due to certain factors, he said only government can regulate mining or end the activities of illegal miners.
According to him, instead of allowing the youth who engage in illegal mining to continue to die, government can harness the potential in them by regulating their operations and buy mining equipment as a way of generating employment and empowering them.
“The government needs to come in. There is no passion to drive the sector and genuine miners are frustrated. Without fundamental restructuring, illegal mining will continue to strive,” he said.
Apparently disturbed by the development, Sunday Tribune learnt that the state government in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Mines and Solid Mineral has been taking steps to arrest the pathetic situation.
The Plateau State Commissioner for Environment and Minerals Development, Abdullahi Abbas, while acknowledging the danger illegal mining poses to the environment to Sunday Tribune, said government was making efforts to address the issue. He admitted that the state more than any part of the country is the most affected and it is a potent security threat. “It is becoming security threat to the state,” he admitted, adding that the youth and few elderly ones behind the mining are not willing to leave the illegal business and embrace another profitable ventures as means of survival.
“The state government is addressing the issue. I hosted a meeting with traditional rulers and community leaders recently on the way to arrest the situation, but to my surprise the leaders are also afraid to talk to the youth. I was told at the meeting that the traditional rulers would not sleep in their houses if they attempt to stop them by force.”
The commissioner said his findings in communities where illegal mining strives is that the young ones no longer attend school anymore because of the fast money involved, adding that the youth have become so wild that they are willing and ready to crush anyone who attempt to stop them. He, however, assured that government would not rest on the matter.
“The state government is not resting or sleeping over the issue; we are making arrangements to group them into cooperatives. The state government through my ministry has contacted the FCMB (First City Merchant Bank) to work out modalities for loan as a means of empowering them,” he explained. Not willing to take personal risk, a community leader in Riyom Local Government Area, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, however, said it would be difficult for the government to stop the youth.
“These youths are smiling to their banks and have become lord of manors. They cannot be ordinarily tamed. A spoon fill with tin goes for about N10, 000, and you think you can stop them by mere persuasions?” he queried.
“They are bread winners of their respective families, but the most unfortunate is that a majority of them use the proceeds from the illicit business on hard drugs and prostitution,” he revealed.
Thus for now on the plateau, it is instant wealth and death for the illegal miners and a fast-depleting classrooms as young men chose quick money and fast life over a future of education and stability.
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