Plateau Gov. Simon Lalong has asked the federal authorities to take urgent steps in tackling illegal mining in some parts of the country, hinging economic and security challenges facing the nation on their activities.
Lalong said illegal mining activities in many cases result in criminality and provide funding for bandits, terrorists, and their collaborators.
The governor, who spoke on Monday on the topic, “Getting Nigeria’s Administration out of oil”, at the ongoing Annual National Conference of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) in Lagos, noted that the losses resulting from illegal mining and carting away of precious solid minerals constitute a huge loss to governments at all levels.
He decried the less attention being paid to solid minerals theft on a large scale because of dependence and focus on crude oil.
“Illegal miners from within and outside the country now have a field day in ripping off the country and the local communities.”
Lalong said he has remained an advocate of the inclusion of solid minerals in both the exclusive and concurrent lists in the nation’s Constitution to enable states properly assert control over mining activities.
On security of lives and properties, he said: “The issue of state police is germane and crucial but needs to be guaranteed by factors including the capacity to train, deploy, monitor, and regularly pay the personnel to avoid a situation where people with arms are owed salaries thereby constituting another security problem.”
Stressing the need for unity and progress of the country, Lalong called for a deliberate effort to address the manipulation of religion and ethnicity.
According to him, the state has made some progress in diversifying the economy by empowering the people to engage in commercial agriculture, extension services and leveraging on crops of comparive advantage such as exotic fruits, potatoes, flowers among others which are unique to Plateau.
Lalong said the administration has acquired Inland Container Terminal and also secured approval of the Federal Ministry of Aviation for the upgrading of the Yakubu Gowon Airport into an International Cargo Airport for the export of agricultural and other commodities.
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