Nigerian governors have been urged to stop issuing executive orders in the country’s mining sector.
A member of the House of Representatives, Gaza Jonathan, who represented the Chairman, Committee on Mineral Resources in the National Assembly, made the appeal on Wednesday at the fifth meeting of the National Council on Mining and Mineral Resources Development, in Ilorin, Kwara State capital.
The meeting was attended by the Chairman, Nigeria Governors’ Forum, Governor Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq of Kwara State, Minister of State for Steel Development, Uba Maigari Ahmadu, captains of industries, some National Assembly members, top government officials and delegates from across the 36 states of the federation.
Gaza disclosed that the National Assembly was working on two bills to ensure proper regulation and control of the mining sector which would have the inputs of the citizens and stakeholders.
He noted that the when eventually passed into law, the bills will ensure that benefits accruing to the area of operation, and environmental protection of the people, are secured.
In his speech, Abdulrazaq noted that the need to diversify the economy and harness potentials in the solid mineral and other sectors cannot be over emphasised.
“The excessive reliance on oil has proven to be unhelpful for our country, and I’m glad we appear to have learnt our lessons,” he said.
Abdulrazaq disclosed that as part of the efforts to maximise the solid mineral potentials of the state, his administration recently registered five Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs) to acquire viable mining sites for the state government.
“We plan to establish a standard mineral market in the state, where all minerals mined from our state will first be registered here before they are transported to other places,” he added.
