By Slivia Shola Oyo
On may 3, the state government announced the arrest of 27 Illegal miners which includes 17 Chinese in Osun State.
The Miners Association of Nigeria have demanded from the Osun State Government to hand over the illegal miners as well as the 17 Illegal miners of Chinese descent to the Federal Government for prosecution as the said offense of illegal mining is a federal matter which should be dealt with by the Federal Government.
The President of the Mining Association Mohammed said, “We demand that the Chinese should be released to the Federal Government for prosecution because this is a Federal Government affair.
“Solid mineral is under the exclusive right of the Federal Government; it is under the purview of the Federal Ministry of Mines and Steel Development.
“It doesn’t mean because they (Osun State Government) caught them that they should not hand them over. We demand they hand them over to the ministry for prosecution, it is not a state affair.”
In addition, he also asked that prominent Nigerians who support illegal mining in the state should be prosecuted too.