Minister for Solid Minerals Development, Dr Oladele Alake has solicited the cooperation and support of the Ministry of Interior in ensuring adequate security of the nation’s mineral resources, assuring that this synergy of efforts will entrench the renewed hope agenda of the present administration.
Dr Alake gave this assurance today when the Minister of Interior, Dr. Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo paid courtesy visit on him in his Abuja office.
The Minister, while speaking on the transformative agenda of the Ministry, stated that the assistance and support of the Ministry of Interior is in the area of securing our mineral resources.
“There is need for synergy between solid minerals and interior ministries. We cannot do it without the active connivance of the Interior Ministry”, Dr Alake explained.
Continuing,the Minister stated that the mining sector is bedevilled with the menace of illegal mining and carting away of the nation’s mineral resources, stressing, the Ministry will fully engage the services of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) in the proposed multi-security task force.
“In the area of security, we want to create an interagency security with the active involvement of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps because they are near the people”, the Minister noted.
Dr Alake furthermore, informed his visitor on the pressing need to improve the capacity of the Nigeria Immigration Services and the Nigeria Custom, so as to sharpen their skills in the area of detecting under reporting of minerals passing through Nigeria ‘s gateways; thus shortchanging the country of badly needed revenue that should have accrued to the Federal government.
He said: “we need the Interior Ministry to help us rejig the capacity of the Services”.
Responding, the Minister of Interior, Dr. Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo stressed that the nation’s solid minerals sector can lift the country out of its economic doldrums. His words: “we have the best quality of minerals resources globally, citing gold and barite as instances.
“We have no reason to be where we are, the economy of Nigeria will be revived with solid minerals”.
Dr Tunji-Ojo explained that the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps is supposed to be a major protector of the nation’s solid Minerals, noting, no asset is more precious than our solid minerals.
He said :we should work out a Mine Ranger similar to such establishment in other sectors the of the economy. We want to work with the Ministry of Solid Minerals Devpt.; the two ministries must synergize on how Nigeria Customs and Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps can work together, bottom line is the synergy that will give us results”.
“We are ready to make the Solid minerals the highest revenue earner for Nigeria”, the Minister of Interior enthused.
Alaba Balogun
Head, Press & PR
