Soldiers, Osun Council Chairmen in Standoff Over Illegal Mining Crackdown

Tension broke out in Ibodi, Atakunmosa West Local Government Area of Osun State, after council chairmen from the Ijesa South Federal Constituency encountered military personnel during an operation targeting alleged illegal mining activities.

The council officials were accompanied by personnel of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, NSCDC, and the Nigeria Police Force. They said the intervention followed complaints from residents about environmental degradation and security problems associated with mining activities in several communities.

The confrontation reportedly began when the enforcement team attempted to stop the collection of levies and issuance of tickets at a mining location in Ibodi. Military personnel at the site allegedly prevented the team from carrying out the action, resulting in a standoff.

The situation was eventually brought under control following the intervention of Hon. Sanya Omirin, who represents Ijesa South Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives, alongside senior police officers.

Following the intervention, the council team continued its exercise and proceeded to Ijana Wasare, where officials announced the closure of sites they described as operating illegally. They also ordered an end to ticketing involving miners allegedly operating without the required licences.

Speaking on behalf of the council chairmen, Ilesa West Local Government Chairman, Lanre Balogun, said communities including Iperindo, Itagunmodi, Igangan, Itapa and Odogbo had suffered environmental and social consequences linked to illegal artisanal mining.

According to him, the problems included destruction of farmlands, pollution of water sources and broader environmental degradation. Balogun said the councils had sought information from the Osun State Mining Office about operators in the affected areas but were dissatisfied with the response they received.

The officials further alleged that some mining operations lacked appropriate licences while unauthorised individuals were collecting revenue through ticketing.

The council chairmen later met the Owa Sare of Ijana Wasare, Oba Adeniyi Adedeji, alongside other traditional rulers and stakeholders, and said they agreed to cooperate in efforts to tackle illegal mining.

Omirin alleged during the inspection that the Osun State Government was allowing illegal mining operations through the issuance of tickets to operators without valid mining licences.

He argued that mining licences fall within the responsibility of the Federal Government through the Federal Ministry of Solid Minerals Development and said he intended to raise the matter before the National Assembly.

The allegations against the Osun State Government have not been independently established, and the reports reviewed by Newspot Nigeria did not include a detailed response from the state government to the specific claims made by the council officials and the federal lawmaker.

The latest confrontation comes amid increased federal enforcement against illegal mining in Osun.

In July, the Federal Ministry of Solid Minerals Development announced the arrest of two suspected illegal miners and the shutdown of an artisanal mining site at Ileki-Ijesa along the Ile-Ife–Ilesa Road. The ministry said the operation was part of a broader campaign against unlicensed mining and its environmental and security consequences.