PUNCH
Governor Abdullahi Sule of Nasarawa State has said that non-Nigerians operating in the nation’s solid minerals sector are earning big, leaving the citizens with peanuts.
Sule stated this at a public policy dialogue on Nigeria’s minerals and mining legislation, organised by the House of Representatives Committee on Solid Minerals at the National Assembly Complex, Abuja, on Monday.
He called for institutional reforms to turn around the fortunes of the sector for the benefit of Nigerians.
He said, “One community in Nasarawa got some kind of compensation of a very small amount of N700m. They were so excited but this was nothing compared to the time when lithium was running roughly about $76,000 per metric ton.
“If we are serious about the future of the economic situation of Nigeria, we must reform what we call the solid mineral sector and if we must reform, we must come up with policies and reform them to benefit Nigerians. If we don’t do that, we will just be joking.”
The Chairman, House Committee on Solid Minerals, Jonathan Gaza said the Nigerian Minerals and Mining Act (Amendment) Bill being considered proposes five per cent of the total revenue of all minerals mined to the host communities.
He said the bill, when passed, will allow for the establishment of a Mines Inspection and Environmental Agency to provide improved deeper oversight of mining activities and bridge the gap between the Federal and State Governments to empower the Mineral Resources and Environmental Management Committee for effective and joint oversight.
“The establishment bill for a Solid Minerals Development Company allocates 75 per cent ownership to the private sector and 25 per cent to the federation of Nigeria. Community Development and the Environment are really prioritised in the bill. The Petroleum Industry Act sets aside 3 per cent of their annual operational expenditure to host communities.
“In the bill, we have set aside 5 per cent of the revenue of all minerals mined to the host communities, and this is due to informality of the sector. We believe that it can be reviewed and improved through this programme,” he stated.
