RETIRED GENERALS RESPONSIBLE FOR ILLEGAL MINING - OSHIOMHOLE

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The Senator representing Edo North in the National Assembly, Adams Oshiomhole, has accused retired military generals of being responsible for illegal mining activities across the country.

Oshiomhole, who chairs the Senate Committee on Interior, made this claim on Friday during the submission of the 2025 budget report by the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Solid Minerals Development, Sampson Ekong, to the Senate Committee on Appropriations.

As a member of the Appropriations Committee and a former Governor of Edo State, Oshiomhole stated that the involvement of these retired generals is widely known.

He also referenced a letter he had previously written to former President Muhammadu Buhari, addressing the issue of illegal mining during Buhari’s tenure.

Oshiomhole said, “The ongoing illegal mining across the country is being carried out by retired generals, and we know them. Yes, we know them. Nobody in Africa doesn’t know them. I wrote a letter to former President Muhammadu Buhari on the matter when he was in office.

“This is because a team that I sent to go and conduct the primary somewhere reported back to me the challenge of conducting primary elections in Zamfara because of the illegal miners.

“If we have to fight this menace, we need to deploy the Army even to kill anyone who is involved in the illegal pumping of oil. We should also deploy JTFs,

Oshiomhole warned that the country’s attempts to diversify its economy would be futile unless President Bola Tinubu’s administration tackles the problem of illegal mining.

The panel supported Oshiomhole’s stance and called on security agencies to rise to the challenge.