Miners, Northern Governors Disagree Over Ban

Two umbrella unions of stakeholders in the mining industry – the Miners Association of Nigeria (MAN) and the Nigerian Union of Mine Workers (NUMW) – have vehemently rejected the suggestion by Northern governors for mining exploration to be suspended in the region as a strategy for tackling banditry and insurgency.

They have therefore called on President Bola Tinubu’s Federal Executive Council (FEC) and the National Assembly to outrightly discard the recommendation, saying the negatives of such an action overwhelmingly outweigh the positives.

Miners Association of Nigeria is the umbrella body for all mineral title holders in the Nigerian Mining Ecosystem. At the same time, the Nigerian Union of Mine Workers (NUMW) represents workers in Nigeria’s mining, quarry, energy, and related sectors.

LEADERSHIP recalls that the Northern States Governors’ Forum (NSGF), after its recent meeting, made several recommendations aimed at curbing the spate of banditry in the region, including a six-month ban on mining exploration and a review or revalidation of mining licences in the area.

However, both industry unions insist that legal mining exploration is legitimate and that halting it would reverse the gains made by the present administration in revitalising the once-comatose mining industry.

In a statement on Monday entitled “Mining and Insecurity: Call for Suspension of Mining Activities in Northern Nigeria Not the Solution”, jointly signed by its national president, Mr Dele Ayanleke, and national secretary, Sulaiman Liman, the Miners Association faulted the NGF while acknowledging “the dire security situation” in the country.

The Association noted that insecurity is a national malaise affecting all sectors, adding that the concentration of criminal activities in rural farming and mining corridors is due to the remote nature of these locations, which are far from well-secured urban centres under the oversight of security agencies.

It argued that “a nexus has not been established between legal mining and terrorism, banditry and kidnapping,” stressing that it is disorderly illegal mining, conducted without licences or regulation, that leads to money laundering and fuels insecurity.

According to the Miners’ body, a clear distinction must be made between legal and illegal mining, stating that “stigmatising mining as the cause of insecurity is a misnomer.”

“Going by antecedents, banning mining activities in Nigeria as a solution to curbing insecurity has not yielded any positive results. For instance, in 2019, the government imposed a ban on mining operations in Zamfara State. Unfortunately, the waves of banditry, kidnappings, terrorism and illegal mining have been escalating, not only in Zamfara, but in adjoining states of Katsina, Kaduna, Niger, Kebbi and others.

“It should also be registered that the victims of the ban are legitimate industry stakeholders who are denied access to their minefields by overzealous security operatives, whereas illegal miners turned bandits and terrorists continue ‘feeding fat’ with the active support of their sponsors. This is made possible by the government’s lack of adequate logistics and personnel to enforce the ban,” the miners asked.

Also, the National Union of Mine Workers (NUMW) described the Northern governors’ call as “misleading and unwarranted.”

Its president, Hamza Muhammad, speaking to journalists in Abuja at the weekend, said the call reflects “a leadership deficit at the level of states in the north” and urged governors to use the powers at their disposal to provide good governance and tackle insecurity.

Mohammed called upon governors of states in northern Nigeria to summon the political will needed to tackle insecurity in their jurisdictions, adding that banning mining would worsen unemployment and insecurity.

Attempts to obtain a response from the Minister of Solid Minerals Development were unsuccessful. The minister’s special assistant on media, Mr Segun Tomori, replied that there was no official statement at the moment. Governor Sule: Mining Not Banned, Only New Licences Suspended

Meanwhile, Governor Abdullahi Sule of Nasarawa State has clarified the recent decision to suspend mining activities across the state. Speaking on Monday in Lafia during a meeting of the State Executive Council, the governor explained that the action is not a total ban on mining for six months, but rather a temporary halt on issuing new licences pending the verification of genuine operators.

According to him, the verification exercise aims to identify legitimate miners and curb illegal mining activities, which contribute no revenue to the state and have been linked to rising insecurity.

Governor Sule noted that illegal miners have aided bandits, kidnappers, and other criminal elements, making it necessary for the government to regulate the sector more effectively. He assured that the suspension will not deprive Nasarawa or any other affected state of revenue, emphasising that the measure is intended to strengthen oversight and enhance safety.