3 weeks ago
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The Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dele Alake, has said that helium has been forced to triple his idiosyncratic information pursuing a question of decease threats from individuals and companies whose mining licences were revoked nether the national government’s renewed thrust to enforce compliance successful the sector.
Alake made the disclosure connected Friday during a pre-event property briefing up of the 10th Nigeria Mining Week, scheduled to clasp successful Abuja from October 13 to 15, 2025. Themed “Nigeria Mining: From Progress to Global Relevance,” the lawsuit volition bring unneurotic policymakers, investors, and manufacture stakeholders to measure reforms successful Nigeria’s coagulated minerals industry.
“In fact, I person had to triple my idiosyncratic information due to the fact that I’ve received respective threats from those whose licences were revoked for 1 signifier of infraction oregon the other. One adjacent sent maine a substance connection threatening maine directly,” Alake said.
According to the minister, the threats became truthful predominant and superior that helium was compelled to grow his equipped information item arsenic a precautionary measurement against imaginable attacks from almighty interests angered by the ministry’s strict enforcement of mining laws.
Alake noted that the crackdown connected dormant and non-compliant licence holders had provoked absorption from influential operators who had “enjoyed years of impunity” earlier his tenure.
“They person employed each sorts of tactics to marque america reverse these decisions. But I told them, you tin spell and survey my antecedents. We didn’t creation into this office; we fought battles to get here. We are battle-hardened, and we volition not retreat.”
The curate disclosed that 3,794 mining titles had been revoked nether his leadership, including a caller cancellation of 1,263 mineral licences wrong the past 2 years, arsenic portion of the government’s effort to reconstruct transparency and subject successful the sector.
However, the determination to triple his information item reportedly runs contrary to President Bola Tinubu’s directive limiting ministers and elder officials to a maximum of 5 information unit and 3 vehicles successful their convoys, successful enactment with the administration’s cost-cutting reforms.
Alake defended his actions, insisting that the reforms were indispensable to sanitise the mining manufacture and guarantee that lone liable investors run successful Nigeria’s coagulated minerals space.
“We came successful and started enforcing the regulations that had ever existed but were ignored for years. Many held licences for implicit a decade, doing thing and failing to wage their yearly work fees. That benignant of impunity cannot proceed nether our watch.”
He added that the ministry had invoked the “use it oregon suffer it” clause contained successful each mining titles, a proviso helium likened to onshore ownership rules.
“Anywhere successful the world, erstwhile you are fixed a certificate of occupancy, you are expected to make the onshore wrong a specified clip oregon suffer it. It’s the aforesaid happening wrong the mining sector.”
Alake accused immoderate affected companies of resorting to blackmail, sponsored media attacks, and adjacent threats of planetary arbitration, contempt their nonaccomplishment to comply with section laws.
“One institution that hasn’t paid work fees for years is threatening planetary arbitration. I privation to spot the planetary justice who volition regularisation successful favour of a steadfast that violated our section laws,” helium said.
Describing the threats and smear campaigns arsenic the “price of reform,” Alake vowed that his ministry would not backmost down.
“The strengthening of these regulations has travel with a price. But we are waging this conflict connected principle, not personality. We cannot proceed doing things the aforesaid mode and expect antithetic results.”
Despite the pugnacious stance, the curate reiterated that the authorities remains unfastened to genuine investors and would proceed to beforehand a transparent situation for liable mining.
“We are not against investors; we invited genuine ones. It is from profitable investments that the authorities tin make gross done royalties, taxes and work fees. But that doesn’t mean we’ll indulge defaulters who repeatedly flout the law.”
Alake said the Mining Cadastre Office had been directed to guarantee strict compliance with each statutory obligations going forward, stressing that the administration’s extremity is to marque Nigeria’s mining assemblage globally competitory and sustainable.
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