The arrested illegal miners in Cross River
Nigeria appears to be taking head on the menace of illegal miners that sparked the raging, seemingly uncontrollable security crisis in Zamfara State, with the arrest of over 100 illegal miners in Yakurr Local Government Area of Cross River State in a sting operation.
Recently, the Senate Committee on Solid Minerals called for a hike in the 2025 budget provision for the solid mineral sector in an effort to underscore the importance of the sector in the nation’s efforts to diversify its hitherto oil-dependent economy.
However, over the years, such efforts have been stymied by the phenomenon of illegal mining in several parts of Nigeria, especially in Zamfara State where an alleged collusion between local criminals and foreign interests has sparked a conflagration that has all but consumed the North West State.
According to a report by
Sun newspaper, the illegal miners in Cross River were arrested in the sting operation reportedly led by the State’s Security Adviser, Maj. General (retd) O. U. Obono.
Suspected to be foreigners, the illegal miners were arrested on Saturday morning – yesterday, January 11 – as they attempted to evade an army checkpoint in Ugep.
The suspects were said to have boarded several empty trucks commuting through the area from the northern part of the state and were bound for Calabar, the state capital.
Majority of them are said to be between 12-26 age brackets and were apprehended with diggers, shovels, drilling machines and attendant earth drilling gear.
Security men, who interrogated the suspects on the ground, confirmed that in their profiling, many of them confessed to being non-Nigerians.
When contacted, the Police Public Relations Officer SP Irene Ugbo said she had not been briefed about the arrest.
Cross River State has been besieged in recent times by a large number of foreign miners who come to illegally exploit natural resources in its forests.
Last year, Bette Philip Obi, a member representing Boki 1 State Constituency raised an alarm following the “invasion” of his constituency by over 1000 illegal miners.
The lawmaker revealed this at Cross River State House of Assembly while sponsoring a motion on a matter of Urgent Public Importance on the encroachment of foreign miners in Okwa 1 and 2 and Ukwango communities in Boki Local Government Area.
Follow us on all social media platforms @dailyquery for news around the globe.
