27th January, 2016
Sand miners in Lagos State have kicked against the stop work order issued to them by the State Ministry for Energy and Mineral Resources, through its Permanent Secretary, Engr. O. N. Hotonu on Monday, 25 January, 2016.
The stop work order letter stated that the ministry had observed with great displeasure, the continual degradation of the state’s ecosystem as a result of incessant mining activities across the state which portends great danger of imminent mining related disasters.
Advising the miners to strictly adhere to the stop work order as law enforcement agencies have been put on notice to arrest and prosecute any erring miner, the Permanent Secretary stated in the letter that the order for the closing of mining sites across the state was from Governor Akinwunmi Ambode.
In a swift reaction to the development, the Joint Lagos State Miners Association which comprises Miners from Ajah, Badagry and Ikorodu axis wrote the Commissioner for Energy and Mineral Resources Mr. Olawale Wasiu Oluwo to express their displeasure at the development which they believed had political undertone.
In the letter dated Tuesday, 26 January, 2016, titled: RE: STOP WORK ORDER, the miners expressed their dismay at the ministry’s disregard for an earlier agreement reached at a meeting held with the Commissioner and the Permanent Secretary in December 2015.
They claimed that instead of the implementation of the agreement which was for the Permanent Secretary to liaise with the stakeholders in the mining business on the issue of consent, what they got was a stop work order without prior notice.
The letter further stated that, “it (the order) did not only come to us as a rude shock, following our last peaceful and progressive maiden meeting held with you (commissioner) and your Permanent Secretary, but also a total disregard for a mutual agreement on the way forward in the sand mining business.”
Jointly signed by Chief Bode Agbolade, Captain Henry Inyang and Hon Abu Lanre Ajayi, for Ajah, Ikorodu and Badagry axis respectively, the miners’ letter said the alleged continued degradation of the state’s ecosystem was due to the infiltration of the mining business by the staff of the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources.
“It is on record and we stand to be challenged, that a high percentage of Senior Staff in the Ministry allocated consents and mining sites to themselves without any experience in the specialized profession. Non members of the mining association also get consent through backdoors,” the protest letter stated.
The association also alleged that a particular level 12 officer in the ministry who had thrice found his way back to the ministry after being redeployed for alleged sharp practices, has been the brain behind the pollution of the mining sector with quacks that pay their ways to secure consent through him and his cartel.
Concluding, the Joint Lagos State Miners’ Association advised the Commissioner to summon a meeting of stakeholders to find a lasting peaceful solution to the situation at hand.