Nobel Laureate, Professor Wole Soyinka, has condemned the declaration of state of emergency by President Bola Tinubu in Rivers State.

Soyinka, who stated this during an interview on Channels Television, described the situation as excessive.

It could be recalled that Tinubu declared emergency rule in the oil-rich state on Tuesday night over the political crisis and instability in the state.

The president also suspended Governor Siminalayi Fubara, his Deputy, Ngozi Odu and all members of the Rivers assembly for an initial period of six months.

In the governor’s stead, Tinubu immediately appointed Ibok-Ete Ibas, a retired naval chief, as the state’s sole administrator.

* _Marshals to be bolstered By Improved Logistics, Ammunition_

The Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dr. Dele Alake has declared that there will be no hiding place for illegal miners in the country as efforts to strengthen operations of the mining marshals and ensure nationwide coverage are in the offing.

Addressing a press conference to mark the one year anniversary of the corps on Friday, the Minister emphasized that the establishment of the Mining Marshals last year has significantly disrupted unauthorized mining activities and restored investor confidence in the sector.

“The activation of the corps to enforce provisions of the Nigerian Minerals and Mining Act (NMMA) has struck fear into illegal operators, largely curbing their operations and serving as a deterrent,” Alake stated.

According to him, ” the mining marshals held direct engagements across 10 states of Niger, Kogi, Nasarawa, Akwa Ibom, Ondo, Kaduna, Enugu, Abia, Kwara and the Federal Capital Territory leading to the arrest of 327 suspected illegal miners; arraignment of 143 suspects; recovery of 98 mining sites and identification of 457 illegal mining sites.”

While the marshals’ operations have been somewhat hampered by logistical constraints, Alake reassured that with the increased budgetary allocation for the Ministry in the 2025 fiscal year, such limitations would be addressed

He thanked President Bola Tinubu and the National Assembly for appropriating a budget commensurate with the huge responsibilities of the Ministry in the 2025 Appropriation Act. This funding, he noted, will enable the ministry to fully equip the Mining Marshals, enhance their operational capabilities, and extend their coverage nationwide.

It will be recalled that the Federal Executive Council (FEC) recently approved N2.5bn for the deployment of satellite technology to enhance the security architecture of the mining sector which will consequently aid the operations of the mining marshals.

With the deployment of satellite monitoring, the federal government would be pioneering air and ground coverage for the security of the solid minerals sector – a major milestone in efforts to sanitise the sector.

Assessing the impact of the Mining Marshals over the past one year, the minister asserted that 2,220 corps at inception which has now been scaled up to 2, 670 operatives have raised awareness of the enforcement capacity of the Federal Government to combat illegal mining, establishing considerable deterrence among illegal miners and contributed to substantial increase in revenue, generated from the sector.

The minister also commended the Commandant of the Mining Marshals, ACC John Attah Onoja, for his leadership and dedication, reaffirming the Federal Government’s commitment to further strengthen the corps with better logistics, additional personnel, equipment, and ammunition to decisively eliminate illegal mining.

In his remarks, Commandant ACC Onoja expressed gratitude to the minister for his guidance and support, noting that the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) approved by the minister has contributed immensely to the successes recorded over the past 365 days.

He welcomed the federal government’s gesture to boost their operations with improved logistics, emphasising that the corps is motivated to ramp up the battle against illegal mining with a view to sanitizing the mining sector.

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), has arrested a 42-year-old Indian lady, Ms. Neetu Neetu at the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport, MAKIA, Kano, with 72 parcels of heroin factory sealed in wafer wraps and packaged as chocolates.

The class A drug consignment weighing a total of 11 kilograms was recovered from Neetu’s luggage after a thorough search, following processed credible intelligence, during an inward
clearance of Qatar Airways flight QR1431 from Bangkok, Thailand via Vietnam and Doha at the arrival hall of the Kano airport on Friday 14th March 2025.
In another operation, the anti-narcotic agency recovers tramadol pills concealed in gas cylinder, cocaine, skunk in Kano, Lagos raids.

A statement by the Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, said the arrest of Neetu signifies a growing attempt by drug trafficking organisations to hire white ladies and foreign nationals to move illicit drugs through the Nigerian borders, a bid that vigilant NDLEA operatives have consistently frustrated with the aid of modern technological tools and proactive intelligence, says Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig Gen Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd) in his immediate reaction to Neetu’s arrest.

In another interdiction operation in Kano, NDLEA officers on Thursday 20th March arrested a 45-year-old suspect, Michael Ogundele with a 50-litre steel gas cylinder at Gadar Tamburawa, along Zaria- Kano road.

Based on credible intelligence, welding tools were later used to cut the giant cylinder after which 50,000 pills of tramadol 225mg concealed in it were extracted.

While Sunday Ogar, 40, was nabbed at Gunduwawa area of Kano on Wednesday March 19 with 27kg skunk, a strain of cannabis, a female suspect Khadijah Abdullahi, 40, was arrested with 424 bottles of codeine-based syrup at Lungun Bulala Yalwa area of the state on Tuesday March 18.

In Lagos, the duo of Olumuyiwa Kolawole and Samod Adisa were nabbed with 67.5kg skunk in Mushin just as 100.8kg of same psychoactive substance was recovered from the store of two fleeing suspects in Anifowoshe area of Mushin while Isah Idris was arrested in Apapa with 4.5kg skunk; 600grams of tramadol 225mg and 30litres of codeine syrup on Tuesday March 18.

Another suspect, Yahaya Mohamed, was arrested same day in Ikotun area of the state with different quantities of cocaine, heroin and methamphetamine.

Across the country, NDLEA Commands and formations continued to intensify their War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) social advocacy sensitization engagements in schools, markets, motor parts, work places and worship centres in the past week.

These include: WADA sensitisation lecture to students and staff of Chrisland School, Ikeja, Lagos; Hakimi Secondary School, Mokwa, Niger state; Marist Comprehensive College, Nteje, Anambra state; Ikole City College, Ikole Ekiti, Ekiti state; Government Day Secondary School, Sunane, Sokoto state; and Government Day Secondary School, Jada, Adamawa state, among others.

While commending the officers and men of MAKIA, Lagos, and Kano Commands of the Agency for the arrests and seizures, its Chairman and Chief Executive, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Marwa (Rtd), noted with satisfaction the balance in drug supply and demand reduction efforts of all the formations nationwide, even as he charged them not to relent.