By Michael Lim, Jos

The closure of a mining site in their community by security operatives over a dispute involving the mining company and the attendant economic woes being suffered by the residents of Latya community in Jos South Local Government Area of Plateau State, have forced them to protest on Wednesday.

Among the protesting residents were youths, women and other community members, amid accusing the company of allegedly intimidating landowners, causing the arrest of residents and failing to honour agreements with families whose lands are being used for mining activities.

Addressing journalists during the protest, the community’s youth leader, James Gyang Samuel, expressed worry that the closure of the mining site was depriving hundreds of residents, especially widows, orphans and other vulnerable persons, of their means of livelihood for the past six months.

In Samuel’s words: “The closure of this mining site has seriously affected our people. Many residents depend on mining activities to feed their families, pay school fees and meet other basic needs.

“Women, widows, orphans and other vulnerable members of the community have been the worst affected. We want the government to intervene so that our people can return to their means of livelihood.”

He spoke also about the disputed mining licence, that: “There are concerns within the community over the validity of the mining licence being used by the company. We are calling on the relevant authorities to investigate its authenticity and establish whether the necessary approvals were obtained to operate in this community.”

Samuel further called for the withdrawal of security operatives from the site, saying that the matter should be handled by the appropriate regulatory authorities. He opined that:

“The security operatives should withdraw from the mining site. This is a mining dispute that should be addressed by the appropriate regulatory authorities, particularly the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC).”

The community’s women’s leader, Mrs Justina Ezekiel Dem, equally accused the mining company of operating in the area for nearly 30 years but currently getting involved in disputes with landowners over their land and mining rights.

In Dem’s words: “The company has been operating in this community for almost 30 years, but recently, the situation changed.

“There have been disagreements with landowners, and some residents have been taken to court over issues concerning their land and mining rights.

“We are the people whose lands are being used for these activities, and we believe our rights and interests must be respected.”

Dem claimed that checks at the Mining Cadastre Office raised questions about the company’s licence and its obtained the necessary consent from affected landowners to operate at the disputed location.

Dem added, “Our checks at the Mining Cadastre Office raised concerns about the company’s authorisation to operate at the location and whether the necessary consent of affected landowners was obtained.

“We want the appropriate authorities to investigate this matter and establish the facts.”

She stressed the economic woes being faced due to the closure, saying many women who had obtained loans from cooperative societies to engage in mining were now struggling to repay their debts.

“Some of our women collected loans from cooperative societies to invest in mining activities. Since the closure of the site, they have been unable to work and are worried about how to repay those loans.

“We are appealing to the Plateau State Government to intervene, investigate the matter and ensure that our community benefits from the mineral resources found on our ancestral land.”

She warned that the community might block roads connecting the area to Jos if the government failed to address their grievances by Friday, 13 November.

“We are giving the government until Friday, 13 November, to address our complaints. If nothing is done, we may be forced to block roads connecting our community to Jos to draw attention to our plight.”

The protesters cite seeking for justice, protecting the community’s economic interests and their right to benefit from mining activities on their ancestral land.

The Plateau State Commissioner for Environment, Climate Change and Mineral Development, Hon. Dr Joshua Ubandoma Laven, could not be reached despite efforts to hear government’s side of the story.

By Seyi Balogun, Lagos
 
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Lagos Zonal Directorate 2, has recovered from Aiteo Exploration and Production Limited and Newcross Exploration & Production Limited the sums of $3,000,000.00 (Three Million United States Dollars) and N1,303,128,000.00 (One Billion, Three Hundred and Three Million, One Hundred and Twenty-eight Thousand Naira) and handed over to the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission, RMAFC on Monday, November 10, 2026.
 
The recovered funds, which form part of the liabilities established against the two companies for unremitted statutory payments to the Federation, were handed over by the Acting Zonal Director of the EFCC’s Lagos Zonal Directorate 2, ACE I Bawa Usman Kaltungo.

The recovery followed an investigation by the EFCC after it received a petition from a consulting firm engaged by RMAFC, alleging conspiracy, tax evasion and economic sabotage resulting in revenue losses to the Federation.
 
The petitioner alleged that  revenues accruable to the Federation in respect of stamp duty and pipeline transportation fees were not remitted into the designated accounts of the Federation.

The affected facilities included Escravos, Pennington, Trans-Forcados, Odudu, Amenam and Nembe Creek Trunkline. 

The alleged non-remittance of the revenues reportedly resulted in substantial losses to the Federation between 2010 and 2019.

In response to the development, RMAFC obtained a presidential fiat dated December 20, 2021, authorising it to recover all outstanding revenues due to the Federation from the affected public and private entities.

Following the commencement of investigation by the EFCC, Aiteo Exploration and Production Limited and Newcross Exploration & Production Limited submitted relevant documents detailing their remittances in respect of their respective operations.

However, a review and analysis of the documents established that Aiteo failed to remit the sum of $38,430,000.00 (Thirty-Eight Million, Four Hundred and Thirty Thousand United States Dollars), being 1.5 per cent stamp duty arising from its acquisition of Oil Mining Lease (OML 29) and Nembe Creek Trunkline (NCTL).
 
Investigations further  revealed that Newcross Exploration & Production Limited failed to remit $22,841,662.03 (Twenty-Two Million, Eight Hundred and Forty-one Thousand, Six Hundred and Sixty-two United States Dollars, Three Cents) as crude oil transportation fees for the use of Nembe Creek Trunkline, which is operated as a joint venture between the Federal Government and Aiteo Exploration and Production Limited.

The two companies subsequently accepted their respective liabilities and commenced payments towards the settlement of the outstanding obligations through the EFCC’s recovery accounts domiciled with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

More investigation and recovery efforts resulted in additional payments between January 28, 2026, and August 24, 2026.

During the period, Aiteo Exploration and Production Limited paid $1,500,000.00 (One Million, Five Hundred Thousand United States Dollars) and N750,000,000.00 (Seven Hundred and Fifty Million Naira) into the EFCC recovery account in respect of unremitted stamp duty.
 
Newcross Exploration & Production Limited paid $1,500,000.00 (One Million, Five Hundred Thousand United States Dollars) and N553,128,000.00 (Five Hundred and Fifty-Three Million, One Hundred and Twenty-Eight Thousand Naira) as outstanding pipeline and terminal fees.

Consequently, the total recovery from the two companies stood at $3,000,000.00 and ₦1,303,128,000.00, which were handed over to RMAFC during the brief ceremony.

By Felix Umande

The presidential candidate of the Peoples Redemption Party (PRP), Donald Duke, has declared his readiness to step down for a formidable opposition candidate in the 2027 election if a consensus one emerges within the opposition coalition to challenge President Bola Tinubu.

Duke said he would respect a democratic decision by opposition parties to settle for another presidential candidate, including former Vice President Atiku Abubakar or former Labour Party candidate Peter Obi, provided such an agreement was reached through a collective process.

The former Cross River State governor spoke on Tuesday in Abuja at the unveiling of his vice presidential candidate, Malam Sule Mohammed, and the PRP manifesto.

Asked whether he would step down for a stronger candidate if the PRP and the opposition coalition agreed to support one person against Tinubu, Duke said the purpose of a coalition should go beyond sharing political positions and selecting a presidential candidate.

He said opposition parties must first agree on a common vision for Nigeria before deciding who should lead the alliance.

“A coalition is not just about picking a presidential candidate. That’s the mistake we are all making. It’s about us coming together to agree on where we would like to take our nation to,” Duke said.

“You’ve called names of two eminent politicians, but that may not be enough. So, I don’t want to presuppose anything. But at the end of the day, I’ll be sportsmanlike about it.”

He added: “If the group, and so far there are quite a number of us, comes up with an agreement that this is the best person to lead the coalition, you can’t say you’re a Democrat and not be subject to the rules of democracy. Of course, if it’s me, I hope they would do the same. And if it’s any other person, I would do the same. I would respect it.”

Duke stressed that the more important thing was not even the picking of a candidate, but the commonality and the direction the coalition wants to take Nigeria.

“We don’t want to replace the APC or the present administration with someone who would take us back again. So, if the candidates and the party agree that this is a person we should back, of course, that’s what is expected of me,” he said.

Duke also accused the ruling All Progressives Congress of enjoying an overwhelming advantage in campaign visibility, alleging that opposition parties were facing difficulties securing venues and advertising spaces ahead of the 2027 elections.

He said the situation was making it increasingly difficult for opposition candidates to reach voters across the country.

“You can see what is happening to other opposition parties who have been on the campaign train. If you go throughout the country, you hardly find their billboards and posters on the streets of the various cities across Nigeria,” he said.

“You only find one party, the APC. In some states, I’m told that you need to spend as much as N1bn for you to even begin to advertise.”