37 miners’ suffocation: Anger spreads, 20 security officers suspended, mining disasters rock Kogi, Taraba

•Atiku, senators, others seek probe

•Adeyanju speaks on alleged cover-up

By Omeiza Ajayi, Luminous Jannamike

Anger mounted yesterday over the reported deaths of 37 suspected illegal miners in the custody of the Niger State Command of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, NSCDC, as the Federal Government suspended 20 officers and ordered an independent investigation into the circumstances surrounding the deaths.

Specifically, government constituted a 10-member independent committee to investigate the incident.

The action followed President Bola Tinubu’s directive for a comprehensive, transparent and unhindered investigation into the incident, which occurred on Thursday, September 17, 2026.

Minister of Interior, Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, who announced the measures yesterday, described the deaths as deeply disturbing, saying government owed the families of the deceased and the Nigerian public a transparent account of what happened.

The minister directed the suspension of all officers connected with the incident pending the outcome of the investigation and warned the leadership of the Corps against interfering with the process.

He said: “Any attempt to destroy or conceal evidence, intimidate witnesses or obstruct the investigation will be treated as a serious offence.”

The minister also directed the NSCDC leadership and all relevant officers to cooperate fully with the committee and preserve all records and material evidence connected with the incident.

He consequently appealed for calm while the independent committee conducts its assignment.

Probe

The committee is mandated to establish the identities of the deceased and investigate the circumstances surrounding their arrest, detention and deaths.

It is also expected to determine responsibility, complicity, negligence and misconduct, and recommend appropriate action, including compensation where applicable and measures to prevent a recurrence.

The committee, which has two weeks to submit its report, is chaired by retired Deputy Director-General of the Department of State Services, DSS, Jonathan Kure, while a former Director-General of the Nigerian Law School, Prof. Isa Hayatu Chiroma, SAN, is secretary.

Other members are retired AIG Hosea Hassan Karma; Prof. Olayinka Buhari, a professor of histopathology and former Chief Medical Director of the University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital; representatives of the Minna Emirate Council and Niger State Government; National Secretary of the Miners Association of Nigeria, Alhaji Liman Sulaiman; human rights lawyer, Deji Adeyanju; Mrs Zainab Suleiman Okino of Blueprint Newspaper; and public affairs analyst, Dr George Agbakahi.

The committee may also co-opt relevant experts, access facilities and documents, visit locations connected with the incident and request memoranda from members of the public.

Among the suspended officers, in addition to the Niger State Commandant of the NSCDC, Suberu Siyaka Aniviye, are officers involved in arrest, investigation, legal, and custodial duties.

Officers

They include SC Usman Isah Ndamaka; ASCI Hassan Mohammed; CCA Bala Mohammed; CSC Oluwadare Sunday; DCC Obafemi Elvis; CSC Annas Shitto Lamino; DCC Philip Ajayi; Barr. Stephen Tsado; ASCI Alhassan Mohammed; IC Abdullahi Sale; IC Mohammed Sonfada; CAI Liman Abubakar; CAI Bala Usman; IC Mohammed Jiya; DSC Isah Suleiman; CAI Ahmed Wushishi; IC Sale Adamu; IC Haruna Mohammed; ASCI Aliyu Sallah and CAI Isah Sanusi.

Government, however, made it clear that the suspension of the affected officers is pending the outcome of the investigation and is not, in itself, a determination of their culpability.

It maintained that the investigation must establish what happened and determine responsibility where wrongdoing is found.

Sunday Vanguard learnt that the investigation is expected to examine the arrests, detention conditions, medical attention provided to the detainees and the events leading to their deaths, while also determining whether any official misconduct, negligence or other violations occurred.

Reacting to his membership of the panel, Adeyanju said he would not accept any financial benefit from the assignment.

The activist, who confirmed his acceptance of the appointment, said he joined the committee to ensure that the interests of the victims were protected and the circumstances surrounding their deaths established.

Monetary

He urged government not to make monetary provisions, stipends or honoraria for members of the committee, describing the assignment as a national duty.

“I will not accept any such payment, and I will not participate in or tolerate any attempt to compromise the investigation or cover up wrongdoing,” he said.

Adeyanju said he would personally bear the cost of his participation, including accommodation, transportation and other expenses.

He further warned that any attempt to shield those responsible or suppress the truth would be exposed.

“If there is any attempt to shield those responsible or suppress the truth, I will expose it,” he said.

According to him, the victims deserved justice and the investigation must not be allowed to fall victim to what he described as the “Nigerian factor”.

Deployed

In a related development, NSCDC has deployed Abdulhamid Kabara as its new Commandant in Niger State.

Kabara’s deployment followed the suspension of Suberu Aniviye as commandant of the Niger NSCDC Command.

NSCDC spokesperson in the state, Abubakar Muti, said in a statement, yesterday, that Kabara formally assumed office and took over the leadership of the command on Friday, September 18.

“The assumption of office comes at a particularly sensitive period for the Command, following the unfortunate deaths of some persons arrested in connection with suspected illegal mining activities in the State,” the statement said.

Muti said Kabara expressed “deep sadness over the loss of lives and extended his heartfelt sympathy to the families of the deceased and everyone affected by the unfortunate incident.”

Unacceptable

Reacting to the incident, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar said the issue goes beyond the suspension of officers already announced by federal government. He said Nigerians must know how 37 people who entered government custody alive ended up dead and who, within the chain of command, should answer for their fate.

Atiku, who stated this in a statement by his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, accused government of attempting to reduce a major accountability question to the suspension of junior personnel.

“Thirty-seven Nigerians, many of them teenagers, entered government custody alive. Thirty-seven of them died there. The Tinubu administration cannot explain away 37 bodies with press releases, suspensions and bureaucratic excuses,” Atiku said.

Atiku also challenged the Minister of Solid Minerals, Dele Alake, over enforcement operations in the mining sector, while saying Tinubu could not distance himself from the conduct of agencies under his administration.

Tragedy

“President Tinubu bears ultimate responsibility for the conduct of his government. He cannot behave like a spectator whenever his administration is confronted by tragedy, scandal or failure,” Atiku said.

He demanded an independent criminal investigation into allegations that the detainees were held in an overcrowded, poorly ventilated cell, insisting that the probe must establish who authorised the operation, who ordered the arrests, how many people were detained and who was responsible for their welfare.

“That allegation demands an immediate and independent criminal investigation. It cannot be resolved through an internal inquiry in which government officials investigate government agents and present government-approved conclusions to Nigerians,” he said.

Atiku also called for the preservation of detention registers, operational and communication records, medical reports and available surveillance footage, as well as independent autopsies and representation for the victims’ families.

The former Vice President linked the tragedy to the wider pressures driving young Nigerians into illegal mining, arguing that enforcement must not strip suspects of their rights.

“Illegal mining is robbing Nigeria of its resources, destroying communities and threatening national security. It must be confronted firmly. But fighting illegal mining is not a licence for state agents to arrest citizens alive and return their bodies to their families,” he said.

He recalled the 2014 Nigeria Immigration Service recruitment tragedy, when at least 16 job seekers died, and questioned why the standard of accountability should be different in the present case.

“In 2014, at least 16 young Nigerians died during the Nigeria Immigration Service recruitment tragedy. The supervising minister, Abba Moro, was investigated and subsequently prosecuted over matters arising from that exercise. Why should the standard be different today?” Atiku asked.

Deaths

Senators from 19 Northern states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), under the aegis of the Northern Senators Forum, NSF, called for an independent, thorough and transparent investigation into the deaths.

A statement by the Chairman of Northern Senators Forum, Senator Abdulaziz Musa Yar’adua, APC, Katsina Central, said:”The Northern Senators Forum joins the nation in mourning the reported deaths of 37 young Nigerians in the custody of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) in Minna, Niger State. The circumstances surrounding their deaths, in which they were reportedly confined in a small room and cried for help before they choked to death, are deeply disturbing and unacceptable.

“No Nigerian, regardless of the allegation against him, should lose his life in the custody of an agency established to protect lives and property. The sanctity of human life and the dignity of every person in custody must be upheld at all times.

“The Northern Senators Forum therefore demands an immediate, transparent and independent investigation into the entire chain of events. Nigerians must know who ordered the arrests, where the detainees were taken, who authorised their detention in the facility, whether the room was fit for human habitation, when the distress calls were made, who heard them, what action was taken, and the precise circumstances in which each victim died. The investigation should involve the National Human Rights Commission, the Nigerian Bar Association, credible civil society organisations and independent forensic experts.

“We equally demand independent autopsies for all 37 victims, with representatives of the families and independent pathologists allowed to participate. If criminal negligence, unlawful detention, reckless conduct or any deliberate act contributed to these deaths, those responsible must be prosecuted, irrespective of their rank or position.

“This tragedy must also trigger a nationwide review of detention facilities operated by all security agencies to ensure that no Nigerian is ever again placed in a situation where a cry for help becomes a cry that nobody answers.’’

66 detainees

Allied Peoples Movement, APM, alleged that 66 detainees were crammed into a cell, adding that 37 subsequently died from excessive heat.

In a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Yusuf Abubakar, the party also claimed that some detainees were sprayed with an unidentified substance before some of them collapsed.

The APM condemned what it described as inhuman detention conditions and called for an open, transparent and unrestricted investigation into the deaths.

It also frowned at the reported use of tear gas and ammunition by security personnel during protests over the incident.

“The lives of citizens must be treated with dignity as guaranteed by the 1999 Constitution (as amended). The death of citizens in detention facilities cannot be justified under any guise,” the party said.

Wider probe

Also, the Media for Social Change Foundation has called for transparent investigations into recent mining-related deaths in Kogi and Taraba states, in addition to the Niger State deaths.

The foundation, in a statement jointly signed by its Co-Founders, Boluwaji Obahopo and Opeyemi Owoeye, expressed concern over reports of the deaths of more than 20 miners in separate pit collapses in Kogi and Taraba, as well as the reported deaths of the 37 suspected illegal miners in NSCDC custody in Niger.

It said the incidents should prompt authorities to look beyond the familiar issues of illegal mining, enforcement and regulation and examine the conditions exposing miners and mining communities to danger.

“A miner should not have to choose between risking death inside a mining pit and risking his life in the course of government enforcement,” the foundation said.

On the Niger incident, the organisation described the deaths as particularly disturbing because the victims reportedly died after being taken into custody.

It nevertheless acknowledged that the actual cause of the deaths was yet to be established and that forensic examinations and autopsies were being conducted.

The foundation urged the authorities to independently and transparently establish the circumstances surrounding the arrests, detention and deaths.

“Every death must have an answer. Every answer must lead to accountability where wrongdoing is established,” it said.

The organisation called for the findings of investigations into the Kogi, Taraba and Niger incidents to be made public and responsibility established wherever negligence or violations were proven.

It also urged authorities to create effective channels through which miners and host communities could report dangerous mining activities and unsafe enforcement practices without fear of reprisals.

“No campaign against illegal mining should become a licence for abuse. No mineral is worth a human life,” the foundation said.

Apart from growing outrage, the incident also triggered protests in Minna, with security personnel using tear gas to disperse demonstrators who gathered over the deaths. The protests were followed by unrest, prompting the Niger State government to impose a curfew.

The protests, which began in Minna on Thursday night and continued on Friday, were reported in Tunga, Maitumbi and along Bosso Road, with youths chanting “Justice must be done” as anger grew over the deaths.

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