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From Jude Owuamanam, Jos
The National President of the Nigerian Mining and Geosciences Society, Akinlade Olutunji, has said that no state governor in Nigeria has the legal right to ban mining activities in his state.
He said that the mining act is found in the executive list and under the control of the Federal Government.
Olatunji, who spoke in Jos ahead of the 53rd council meeting of the NMGS scheduled to hold in Jos in March 2024, said with the controversy over the rights to mining activities, state governors have no right to ban mining, but can legislate on mining activities in their respect states
According to him, this issue of legality of mining activities is under the control of the federal government, which is found in the exclusive list.
He added that the Minister for Solid Minerals, Dele Alake, has repeated this issue on several occasions while urging state governors to, as a matter of urgency, take quality measures in guiding the activities of illegal miners in their domains.
“Because of the challenges faced by the issue of mining across the country which had led to increased insecurity across the country, he called on stakeholders in the country to join hands with the federal government that is already handling this challenge,” he pointed out.
