The Benue State government has put a halt to all mining operations until the completion of all procedures related to the gathering of miners data.
Hyacinth Alia, the state governor, issued the order in Makurdi while meeting with the Benue Chapter of the Miners Association of Nigeria.
Speaking further to the Environment Management Committee (MIREMCO), the governor directed that the documentation of all miners data in the state begin immediately.
This exercise, he explained, is necessary due to reports of security threats in the state.
In response to the environmental challenges that residents face in the state, particularly in Kwande, the governor expressed displeasure with the contamination of water sources in these affected areas.
The governor urged the state’s security agencies and joint task force to do the right thing, as doing so will improve people’s well-being and increase the state’s internally generated revenue..
‘The state government will not tolerate any illegality. It is our administration’s prerogative to protect the lives and property of the people.”.
Fidelis Mnyim, the state commissioner for justice and public order, was also present at the meeting. According to him, the governor opposes illegal activities surrounding mining, not mining itself.
In his capacity as the MIREMCO chair, Mr. Mnyim disclosed that the state has implemented several measures to facilitate the oversight of the mining industry within the state.
The head of the Nigeria Miners Association in Benue, John Tersugh, offered his resolute support and pledged to work with the governor to inspect the mining industry.
Similar to this, Simon Ogwu, a mining officer in the Federal Ministry of Mining and Solid Minerals, pledged to assist the state government in conducting a thorough examination of the mining industry in the state.
Two miners in the state, Dennis Tarhemba and Benjamin Nyior, asked for an environment that would allow them to conduct mining operations in the state efficiently.
According to a NAN report, a few miners have requested that the governor take up the issue of the industry’s multiple taxation.
