The Osun State Joint Task Force recently inaugurated by Governor Gboyega Oyetola has apprehended 27 illegal miners, consisting of 17 Chinese and 10 locals, and a local traditional chief.
They were arrested following a coordinated sting operation around Ilesa and Ife axis of the state.
Speaking on the development, the Deputy Chief of Staff to the Governor, Abdullahi Binuyo, said no responsible government would fold its arms and watch its land being degraded by unauthorised persons.
He notes that aside from the economic leakages, the illegal miners have also polluted Osun River with poisonous metals, thereby making it unsafe for human consumption and irrigation.
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The governor’s aide was, however, quick to add that apart from ensuring that those arrested are prosecuted, they will also be made to pay compensation.
He said: “As part of the government’s economic reforms, solid mineral is a major sector we are looking to explore. For these reforms to work, it has become imperative to stop illegal mining and step up enforcement activities. The result is what we are witnessing today.
“The other people you see here neither have genuine mining licences nor are they registered with the government. What they claim to have is exploration licences, which does not allow them to mine the way they are doing. So, we will prosecute them and make them pay damages.
“Apart from flouting government’s COVID-19 order by refusing to stay at home, they have created environmental disaster for us, by poisoning our river which is a major public health concern for us.”
Earlier, one of those arrested, May Zam, who was the only one that could speak passable English among the Chinese, had disclosed that she was not aware they were engaged in illegal mining.
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