The Federal Government has deployed Mining Marshals for intelligence gathering, compliance monitoring and operational oversight in the solid minerals sector.
This was disclosed in a statement issued on Tuesday by the Commander of Mining Marshals Operations and Assistant Commandant of Corps, Attah Onoja.
Onoja stated that the deployment is part of efforts to strengthen enforcement against illegal mining activities.
“The Mining Marshals are now participating in investigations, intelligence gathering, compliance monitoring and fact-finding missions conducted by the Federal Ministry of Solid Minerals Development.
“As part of the initiative, the Mining Marshals recently joined ministry officials on operational visits to mining sites in Nasarawa and Plateau states.
“The operations were carried out under the leadership of the Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dele Alake,” the statement read.
The statement said that the operations were aimed at strengthening monitoring, regulatory compliance and operational oversight within the sector.
It read, “The team was led on different occasions by the Permanent Secretary of the ministry, Engr. Faruk Yusuf Yabo, who represented the minister during the field engagements.
“During one of the operational and fact-finding missions, the Commander of the Mining Marshals, ACC Attah John Onoja, accompanied ministry officials to a mining site allegedly being illegally exploited.
“The visit was part of efforts to verify allegations of unlawful mining activities, assess compliance with extant mining regulations and obtain field-based information necessary for administrative, regulatory and possible enforcement actions.”
“The delegation also included senior ministry officials such as Engr. Frank Odoom, Director of Special Duties; Engr. Imam A. Ganiyu, Director of Mines Inspectorate; Andrew Zubiri, Director of Legal Services; and Ibrahim Abdulmajeed J., representing the Director General of the Mining Cadastre Office.”
According to the statement, the engagements created an important feedback mechanism between government authorities and mining communities.
It added that the engagements enabled concerns relating to illegal mining, environmental practices, security challenges and regulatory compliance to be communicated directly to authorities.
It further stated that the Mining Marshals have continued to support the ministry’s operations through “intelligence support, operational collaboration and inter-agency coordination across mining communities nationwide.”
