Foreigners perpetrating illegal mining in Taraba– Faransa
By Chuwang Dungs
The Chairman of the Taraba State Special Task Force Committee on Environmental Protection, Public Safety and Prohibition of Deforestation, Jeremiah Faransa, has said perpetrators of illegal mining in the state are mostly foreigners.
Mr Faransa made this known while addressing the press on Wednesday in Jalingo, the state capital.
He said that all illegal mining happening in the state could be traced to foreigners that came into the country illegally or with extraction permits for another purpose.
He explained that among those arrested and detained are foreign nationals from Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso, and China.
“The Special Taskforce has made several arrests, including foreigners from Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso and China. We will leave no stone unturned until these illegal operations are dismantled in the state,” Faransa said.
Though he did not provide an exact figure of those arrested, he confirmed that the detainees had been handed over to the mobile taskforce court for prosecution.
He revealed that nearly half of the mining companies operating in the state are in violation of regulations.
Faransa stated that many of the companies’ licenses have expired, while others have failed to keep up with required fee payments.
He expressed disappointment that the illegal miners have left extensive damage without any attempts to fill the lands, or fulfilled their corporate responsibility to the communities.
Faransa, also raised alarm over an influx of large-scale charcoal merchants from neighboring states and the Federal Capital Territory, who are felling economic trees across the state for charcoal production.
“We had to take action by confiscating trucks transporting charcoal out of the state. Our investigations reveal that valuable economic trees are now being cut down for this purpose.”
He stressed that the state does not oppose the local use of charcoal, but that the indiscriminate felling of trees for external profit will not be tolerated.
“We can’t stand by as charcoal merchants from Abuja jeopardize our environment. Charcoal production must not come at the cost of our ecosystem,” Faransa said.
He called on the state government to immediately initiate a tree-planting campaign to prevent worsening desert encroachment.
“If that is not done, in the next five years, the state will face severe desertification,” he stated.
He commended Governor Agbu Kefas, for his efforts to revive and put the mining sector in the state on the right track.
