Meanwhile, the Minister of Mines and Steel Development, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, has also commissioned thirty eight surveillance vehicles bought for mines officers, valued at about N322 million.
While commissioning the surveillance vehicles, the Minister remarked that this is the first time the ministry would procure such a large fleet of surveillance vehicles. He urged the Mines Officers to use the vehicles and other surveillance gadgets to ensure effective inspection of mines activities.
The minister said: “The execution of this vehicle procurement project is therefore a clear demonstration of the commitment of this administration to our strategic goal of repositioning the mining sector for greater productivity. One of our objectives is to strengthen our ministry with the requisite capacity and capabilities to deliver on our mandate to effectively regulate the sector.
Fayemi stated that the fleet of vehicles cost Government about N322 Million, which is no small expenditure in view of competing priorities.
He said the purchase of the vehicles has successfully addressed the challenge of the absence of logistical support for field operations of the technical departments of the ministry. The progress will result in scaling up the capacity of the departments for effective discharge of their statutory duties and functions.
The Minster said beginning from January 2017, he expect to start seeing the positive impact of the investment in terms of increased revenue generation, reduction in number of illegal mining incidences, fewer cases of conflicts arising from mining activities, and timely rendering of periodic reports of mining activities from respective field stations.
He warned officers to use the vehicles strictly for the official duties they are meant for.