Taraba State Governor, Darius Ishaku, is worried about the huge financial losses suffered by states and the Federal Government due to activities of illegal miners in the country.
According to him, mineral resources development is a critical aspect of attention for the state government and this has prompted him to create a ministry to maximise the benefits therein.
The governor made the remarks on Monday when he visited the Minister of Mines and Steel Development, Olamilekan Adegbite, at his office in Abuja.
He decried the regrettable situation where illegal miners were smiling to the banks daily while both the Federal and state governments were on the losing side.
Governor Ishaku, therefore, suggested that urgent measures should be put in place by the Federal Government to check illegal mining with stringent punishment for offenders.
He explained that the visit to the minister was to avail him the policy direction on the best practices his administration could adopt for implementation.
The governor also stated that he has an insight into what the Federal Government was doing at its level prior to the visit.
On his part, the minister called on other state governors to emulate Governor Ishaku by seeking to update themselves on the developments in the country’s minerals resources sector.
He also asked state governments to develop a database on the sector and be guided by the Federal Government’s rich stock of data on the minerals sector on the way forward.
Meanwhile, the governor used the opportunity of the visit to present some Highland Tea products of his state to the minister.
