Alake urges Kogi youths to persuade elders to stop supporting illegal mining
The Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dele Alake, has urged youths in Kogi State to engage traditional rulers, community leaders and local authorities to end alleged support for illegal mining activities in their communities.
Alake made the appeal on Thursday when members of Concerned Kogi Youths Against Environmental Degradation protested at the ministry over alleged environmental destruction linked to mining activities in Kogi East.
The minister said the Federal Government was strengthening its campaign against illegal mining through increased use of technology and the consolidation of the Mining Marshals.
According to him, Kogi State has remained a major focus of the government’s enforcement efforts, noting that the first operation of the Mining Marshals was carried out in Yagba East Local Government Area, where illegal miners were removed from a site covered by mining licence 19325 belonging to North-South Extractive Industries.
Giving an update on the activities of the Mining Marshals, Alake said 374 illegal mining sites had been identified between March 2024 and August 2026, while 108 had been cleared.
He said 743 suspects had also been arrested, with 165 cases involving 430 accused persons currently undergoing prosecution.
“So far, we have secured five convictions,” Alake said.
The minister said investigations by committees constituted by the ministry had shown that some illegal mining activities in Kogi were allegedly being carried out by indigenes with the support of some community stakeholders.
“Illegal miners are not aliens but indigenes involved in illegitimate livelihood with the support of elders, traditional rulers and local government functionaries,” he said.
