Reps Panel Pushes Reforms To Tackle Illegal Mining

The House of Representatives Ad Hoc Committee on Mineral Exploitation, Security and Anti-Money Laundering has warned that illegal mining, weak enforcement and money laundering are fuelling insecurity and depriving Nigeria of billions in revenue, urging stronger collaboration among relevant agencies to tackle the menace.

Chairman of the committee, Sanni Abdulraheem, gave the warning at a High-Level Stakeholders Workshop on Extractive Industry Governance in Abuja.

He said the committee was established to investigate illegal mineral exploitation, trace illicit financial flows, assess security around mining communities and recommend reforms to strengthen governance of the extractive sector.

Abdulraheem explained that Nigeria’s vast deposits of gold, lithium, tin, coal and other solid minerals had failed to deliver expected economic benefits because of widespread illegal mining and criminal activities and disclosed that the committee had already begun engagements with relevant agencies and would compel cooperation where necessary to obtain information required for its investigation.

He called on the Federal Ministry of Solid Minerals Development, the Nigeria Mining Cadastre Office, the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Mining Marshals, the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU) and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to work closely with the committee.

He also urged state governments, traditional institutions, licensed mining operators, civil society organisations and the media to support efforts to improve transparency and accountability in the sector.

Declaring the workshop open, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Dr Tajudeen Abbas, described the assignment of the ad hoc committee as one of the most important before the National Assembly, saying illegal exploitation of Nigeria’s mineral resources had robbed the country of huge revenues and undermined national sovereignty.

He said the House needed credible evidence and recommendations from stakeholders to guide legislative reforms.

Also speaking, Commandant General of the NSCDC, Ahmed Audi, represented by Commander of Mining Marshals ACC Attah John Onoja, called for the establishment of a special court to fast-track prosecution of illegal mining offenders.

He said Mining Marshals had arrested more than 671 suspects since 2024, with 397 already charged to court, adding that their operations had contributed to a 337 per cent increase in mining revenue while seeking greater funding, surveillance technology and legislative support to sustain the fight against illegal mining.

Oduyemi Odumade, Edited By Grace Namiji