Seyi Makinde, the governor of Oyo State, has declared that he will not outlaw mining in the region.
When providing situation updates on the explosion that shook Bodija in the state capital of Ibadan on Tuesday night, Makinde made this statement.
The areas affected by the incident include Bodija, Agbowo, Eleyele, and Orogun. The governor had since blamed illegal miners, who stored explosive devices in one of the buildings in Bodija for causing the explosion.
However, he asserted that his administration was in control of the matter while President Bola Ahmed Tinubu took action to support the state.
Makinde continued by saying that the victims and their families had temporary housing supplied by his government.
However, Makinde responded, “My approach has been a little bit different,” when asked if he was considering banning mining in the state in the wake of the tragedy during an interview on Channels TV Politics Today.
Since some people are mining in the state lawfully, I won’t go out and try to outlaw mining operations. They might be foreign investors. You’ll convey the idea that we don’t follow the agreements we made with individuals and that this is a lawless place.
“It is a difficult route to take. When we are swimming through the situation we have found ourselves, we will not have a knee-jerk reaction to the issue.”
Techrectory with Agency Report