ILLEGAL MINING OPERATIONS IN OAU
The Nigerian government has been paying lip-service to unregulated and reckless mining activities. As against what government is portraying, I don’t want to believe that these activities are without the knowledge and even subtle backing of the government because, it appears more like an organised criminal industry.
As it is today, reckless mining activities are going on in Obafemi Awolowo University’s land. Some parts of the staff quarters of the university are seriously affected by activities of miners. I am very careful in referring to them as “illegal miners” because, in response to this intervention, they might come out with certification which was given to them by the federal government.
I also don’t want to assume that what is being witnessed in OAU today is the case that some “powerful Nigerians” as stated by Minister of Solid Minerals, Dele Alake, are the ones spearheading the mining on OAU soil. At least, the university management will not just sleep and wake up to sanction the activities of miners on the university soil, a federal government land.
Meanwhile, it is necessary we evaluate what we are in for if this criminal act continues. One of the primary concerns associated with illegal mining is its devastating impact on the environment. Unregulated mining operations often involve the use of harmful chemicals such as mercury and cyanide, which are used to extract minerals like gold and lead. These chemicals can leach into nearby water sources, contaminating rivers and groundwater, and posing serious health risks to both humans and wildlife (students and staff in this case). The indiscriminate use of heavy machinery and explosives further exacerbates environmental degradation, deforestation, soil erosion, and habitat destruction.
Furthermore, illegal mining contributes to other environmental problems such as air and water pollution, which can have widespread repercussions on human health and livelihoods. In addition, these activities threaten biodiversity and disrupt delicate ecological balances.
The invasion of OAU land by miners calls for urgent and serious debate on the future of education in the country. It is unimaginable that a university such as OAU with a functioning department of Geology will be caught in the web of the activities of dangerous miners. Such activity defeats and insults the purpose for which the university was created. Ordinarily, the university should be witnessing groundbreaking research on how the country can leverage our minerals to solve the challenges of national revenue shortage instead of participating in archaic and environmentally dangerous mining activities. That is pure economic sabotage!
The Bola Tinubu-led federal government and, indeed, the traditional rulers must spare our ivory towers of their neo-liberal impunities and immediately halt the cruel activities of reckless miners at OAU Staff Quarters.
Kazeem Olalekan Israel, OAU, Ile-Ife
