The minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dele Alake, has stated that powerful Nigerians are connected to the illegal mining going on in the country, News About Nigeria reports.
The Minister stated this during a visit to the explosion site in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, on Monday.
He stated that he stands by the assertion he made at his budget defence in the House of Representatives and Senate that powerful Nigerians are behind the banditry associated with illegal miners in this country.
He noted that he drew his conclusion from intelligence reports that were obtained, maintaining that there is a lot of connivance along and among the strata of society, both high, medium, and low.
Alake, however, disclosed that since his comment on those sponsoring illegal miners in the country, he has been receiving a lot of death threats, but noted that he remains unfazed by the threats, maintaining that the truth must be told regardless of who was involved.
He further disclosed that the government will employ both kinetic and non-kinetic strategies and tactics to combat all of these menaces, adding that the public will be spared from the details as sharing them will be un-strategic.
Alake also assured the people that the Federal Government was working in concert with all the critical stakeholders at the state, local government, and host communities to bring an end to the activities of the illegal miners.
While condemning the explosion that rocked the Bodija area of Ibadan last week, the minister stated that it would be presumptuous and precipitate for the government to make any solid or definite pronouncement on the incident for now, until all forensic analysis reports and all the investigations from all the security agencies have been examined, and therefore called in patience on the part of the people.
