By Martha Agas
A Non-Governmental Organisation, Renevlyn Development Initiative (RDI), has called for synergy between local vigilante groups in mining host communities and the Mining Marshals for security of mining sites.
The Executive of RDI, Philip Jakpor, made the call in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria on Monday in Abuja.
He described the move as crucial in enabling the marshals achieve their objective of securing mining sites across the nation.
NAN reports that the mining marshals security unit was established in 2024 by the Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dele Alake, to secure mining sites nationwide.
The personnel of the unit are drawn from the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), and 2,570 personnel have been inaugurated with more than 300 illegal miners arrested and prosecuted.
Jakpor said that the host communities should be involved in securing the sites because of their familiarity with the terrain, which would help the marshals in the discharge of their duties, particularly in surveillance.
“They know the bad eggs of the community; they know the strange faces and the good faces in the community.
“So, if mining marshals drawn from the NSCDC work with communities that already have vigilante, I think the impact will be more. That is the kind of synergy needed, “ he said.
According to him, the establishment of the mining marshals is timely, given the scourge of insecurity at mining sites, which he described as hotbeds for insurgency.
Jakpor also urged the government to have adequate welfare for the marshals to enable them discharge their duty diligently.
He said that the act would also discourage them from accepting bribes from illegal miners to carry out their activities.
“The marshals will be the ones to raise alarm when things are going wrong, but if you do not pay them well, the illegal miners will be able to entice them, and when they do that, they can compromise.
“ Adequately funding that front also means providing the tools they need for work. When I talk about tools of work, I mean they should be able to reach mining sites no matter how far they are.
“So, if they need choppers, they should have them. This is because when the Shiroro incident happened, one of the biggest problems the state governor mentioned was that the area was not accessible, ‘’ he said.
