The Special Adviser on Security to the Governor of Oyo State, Fatai Owoseni, revealed that the state government has uncovered an illegal mining and gemstone market in Ibadan.
Despite this discovery, the operators of the market claim to possess approval from the Federal government, as stated by Owoseni in an interview with ARISE NEWS on Thursday.
Owoseni addressed the recent explosion in Ibadan resulting from stores detonated by illegal miners. He emphasized the importance of citizens providing credible information to security agencies for the government to be aware of all activities within the state.
Regarding illegal mining, Owoseni explained, “For the past two years, the Oyo State governor has been engaging the federal government with regards to mining. We’ve discovered that there is an illegal mining market, gemstone market in Ibadan around Ojoo and populated by foreigners. And when you go there that you want to do any operation, either as police or state apparatus, they will show you approval which they have gotten from the federal government.”
Commenting on issues within the mining industry, Owoseni pointed out decadence in the monitoring process by those responsible for overseeing miners. He stated, “The conditions are that you must have a magazine, that’s like a storage where you should keep these things,” and noted instances of diversion and misrepresentation in the application process.
Highlighting the public’s role in providing information, Owoseni explained, “The notion that Nigerians and everyone has that the security people must know everything, well, it’s a bit right, but at the same time, wrong. The concept and philosophy guiding security work, especially policing, is that the people are the police are the people. Without credible intelligence, the security people would not know anything.”
He further addressed reports of illegal activities in the area, emphasizing that if such information had been reported, the government would have taken immediate action. Owoseni added, “Government won’t know if the people don’t give information,” and highlighted the involvement of notable individuals in the community who cannot be easily overlooked.