EFCC Records 25 Illegal Mining Cases, Secures Forfeiture Of 102 Tonnes Of Solid Minerals – Olukoyede

The chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ola Olukoyede, has disclosed that between October 2023 and July 2026, the agency recorded 52 illegal-mining cases.

He said during the same period, the commission also secured the forfeiture of 102 tonnes of solid minerals.

Olukoyede stated this in a keynote address themed, “Uprooting the Roots of Resource Theft: A Zero-Tolerance Approach to Mining Corruption and Increasing Insecurity in Nigeria”, which he delivered at a conference organised by the

Michael Imoudu National Institute for Labour Studies (MINILS), Ilorin, Kwara State.

The conference, which MINILS organised in partnership with the Human and Environmental Development Agenda HEDA), has “Safeguarding the Future: Addressing the Nexus of Illegal Mining, Corruption and Climate Resilience in Africa” as its theme.

The EFCC boss lamented that Nigeria was not deriving the optimum dividends from her mineral resources because of mining corruption, resource theft and insecurity.

He, however, noted that the quantum of mineral wealth available to the nation is sufficient to make her a superpower in the world.

Olukoyede, who said that resource theft is rarely as simple as one individual entering a mining site illegally, disclosed that “resource theft involves an intricate network of well-oiled syndicates of local and international players.”

“Behind that miner may be somebody who provided the money. There may be a licence holder or illegal operator somewhere in the chain. There may be somebody waiting to buy what is illegally extracted. Someone may arrange transportation. Someone may facilitate documentation. Somebody may provide protection or simply decide not to ask questions. Eventually, somebody receives the proceeds.

“Therefore, dealing with illegal mining involves breaking an impregnable chain of fraudulent actors: young men carrying shovels, their financiers, buyers of the minerals, compromised officials facilitating the operation, beneficiaries from the proceeds and other actors. A serious enforcement strategy must move from the pit to the purse,” he stated.

He pointed out a close connection between resource theft and insecurity, adding that any economic activity that operates substantially outside regulation creates opportunities for criminal interests.

He said all hands must be on deck to totally eradicate resource theft in the country.

“To totally erase resource theft, all hands must be on deck. We need stronger operational cooperation between sector regulators, financial intelligence institutions, law-enforcement agencies, customs authorities, revenue agencies and other relevant institutions. That cooperation must go beyond meetings and memoranda. It must translate into data sharing, joint intelligence and coordinated action.

“If a suspicious mining operation is identified, we should increasingly be able to follow the trail from the licence to the mine, from the mine to the buyer, from the buyer to the money, and from the money to the ultimate beneficiary. That is how you dismantle a network rather than merely arrest an individual. I also believe host communities must become active participants in this process.

“Traditional institutions, community associations, youth groups, civil society and local leaders should have channels through which suspicious activities can be reported responsibly,” Olukoyede said.