Tragedy struck as two brothers, Sadiq Ibrahim and Zubairu Ibrahim were reported dead after a mine collapsed in Kakaki village, located in the Paikoro local government area of Niger State.
The incident which occurred over the weekend followed three previous mine collapses in the Shiroro and Paikoro areas in recent months.
The brothers, aged 20 and 25, had left home without informing their parents that they were heading to the mine to dig for solid minerals.
Their absence was only noticed later that evening when they failed to return for dinner and evening prayers.
According to their father, Mallam Zubairu Ibrahim, the family initially assumed the young men were out with friends.
However, when they did not return, the family learned that the brothers had gone to the mine site, hoping to find gold or other valuable minerals.
Zubairu said he sent community members to search for his sons, and tragically, their bodies were found buried beneath the collapsed soil at the riverbank.
Speaking with officials from the state Ministry of Mineral Resources who paid a condolence and fact-finding visit to the village, Ibrahim lamented how he could cope with life after burying two sons in one day.
The team from the Ministry of Mineral Resources was led by the Permanent Secretary, Alhaji Yunusa Mohammed Nahauni and included directors, the Miners Association State Chapter Caretaker Chairman, and the Nigeria Union of Mines Workers (NUMW).
The Permanent Secretary lamented that the death was avoidable if the community had abided with the Governor’s order suspending mining in the state stressing that the directive suspending mining in the state is still in force as the ministry will continue to crack down on illegal mining operations. He warned that anyone found violating these regulations would face legal consequences
Nahauni who expressed the government’s condolences reiterated the need to determine the cause of the accident urging the community to inform the ministry whenever they discover any mineral elements in their vicinity to receive proper guidance.
When the team wanted to visit the mine site to ascertain and assess the level of damage, they were prevented by the villagers who were ready to beat them up as they thought the government team was in the village to extort money from them.
The villagers, the majority of whom were youths noted that an initial team from the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) had visited the village and allegedly extorted N25,000 from the parents of the deceased to fuel their vehicle.
It was learnt that this act has been causing issues for other authorities as the villagers believe that everyone who comes is out to extort money from them.
