The Federal Government has intensified its clampdown on illegal mining activities across the country, with the arrest of two suspected illegal miners and the closure of a mining site in Osun State.
The suspects, identified as Danladi Isa and Musa Kabiru, both in their 20s, were apprehended during a joint enforcement operation carried out by officials of the Federal Ministry of Solid Minerals Development and security agencies.
The operation targeted illegal artisanal mining camps at Ileki-Ijesa, along the Ile-Ife–Ilesa Road, following intelligence reports on unlawful mining activities in the area.
According to a statement released on Sunday by the Special Assistant on Media to the Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Lara Owoeye-Wise, the ministry’s Solid Minerals Task Force stormed the location after receiving credible information about the activities of illegal miners.
Several suspects reportedly escaped into nearby bushes after sighting the enforcement team, but Isa and Kabiru were arrested. Authorities also seized various mining tools and equipment used for the illegal operations.
The task force dismantled the miners’ operational bases and sealed the site in line with provisions of the Nigerian Minerals and Mining Act.
Items recovered during the raid included two motorcycles, pumping machines, Lister generators, mineral processing equipment, long hose pipes, gold-trapping carpets, cutlasses and other mining implements.
The Southwest Zonal Mines Officer, Ajibade Ganiyu, who led the operation, said the exercise was part of the Federal Government’s efforts to enforce mining laws, protect the environment and prevent the illegal exploitation of the country’s mineral resources.
Ganiyu said surveillance and enforcement activities would continue across the South-West and other regions to eliminate illegal mining activities and restore order in the sector.
Similarly, the Osun State Mines Officer, Wasiu Adeboye, warned that the government would no longer tolerate illegal mining, stressing that sponsors, financiers and operators of such activities would face legal consequences.
“This enforcement exercise sends a clear message that illegal mining will no longer be tolerated. Sponsors, financiers and perpetrators of these unlawful activities should know that they will continue to face the full weight of the law,” Adeboye stated.
Reacting to the development, the Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dele Alake, said the administration of President Bola Tinubu had prioritised the sanitisation of the mining sector through stronger regulations, intelligence gathering and improved enforcement.
Alake disclosed that the deployment of Mining Marshals had boosted the government’s efforts, leading to the arrest of hundreds of illegal miners and the prosecution of several suspects, including foreign nationals.
He said the Federal Government’s ongoing operations were aimed at ensuring that Nigeria’s mineral resources contribute to economic growth through legal, transparent and responsible mining practices.
The minister urged traditional rulers, community leaders and residents of mining areas to support the government’s efforts by providing information on illegal mining activities and refusing to protect offenders.
According to him, illegal mining causes environmental damage, promotes insecurity, reduces government revenue and threatens the livelihoods of legitimate miners.
The latest crackdown is part of wider reforms by the government to reposition the solid minerals sector as a major driver of economic development while curbing illegal exploitation of Nigeria’s mineral wealth.
FG Seals Osun Illegal Mining Site, Arrests Two Suspects
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