Alake Warns Kogi Communities Against Shielding Illegal Miners

The Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dele Alake, has urged youths in Kogi State to persuade community leaders and local authorities to stop protecting illegal miners accused of damaging the environment.

Alake made the call on Thursday while receiving members of Concerned Kogi Youths Against Environmental Degradation, who protested at the ministry over alleged environmental damage caused by mining activities in parts of the state.

The minister commended the protesters for supporting the government’s campaign against illegal mining and said the Federal Government was deploying technology while strengthening the Mining Marshals to intensify enforcement.

He said Kogi remained a major concern to the ministry, recalling that the first operation of the Mining Marshals involved the removal of illegal miners from an area covered by mining licence 19325, belonging to North-South Extractive Industries, in Yagba East Local Government Area.

Alake said investigations by ministry committees had also shown that many illegal miners operating in Kogi were indigenes rather than outsiders, allegedly carrying out illegal activities with the backing of some community elders, traditional rulers and local government officials.

According to him, the Mining Marshals identified 374 illegal mining sites between March 2024 and August 2026, with 108 sites cleared. He added that 743 suspects had been arrested, while 165 cases involving 430 accused persons were being prosecuted, with five convictions secured so far.

The minister warned that illegal mining was depriving licensed companies and the government of revenue because illegal operators do not pay licensing fees or royalties. He also accused them of contributing to environmental degradation and warned that enforcement operations would intensify.

Alake urged the protesters to take the message to their communities and persuade traditional and local authorities to cooperate with enforcement agencies. He said the government’s increasing use of technology and the consolidation of the Mining Marshals would make it increasingly difficult for illegal miners to operate.

Speaking on behalf of the protesters, the group’s coordinator, Comrade Isaiah Davies Ijele, said the demonstration was aimed at drawing attention to alleged environmental degradation in Kogi East, particularly in Ankpa and Omala local government areas.

Ijele alleged that some mining activities were being conducted in breach of environmental and regulatory requirements, resulting in damaged roads, destroyed farmland, polluted water sources and worsening living conditions. He called for investigations into mining operations in the affected areas and urged the ministry to deploy its Mines Inspectorate and Mining Marshals to enforce regulations and shut down companies found violating the law.

Responding, the Director of Mining Environmental Compliance, Dr Vivian Okono, said the ministry was compiling a list of mining companies allegedly defaulting on their Community Development Agreements. She said the names would be published and the companies subjected to additional penalties in line with the minister’s directives.