…Challenges Suspended NSCDC Commandant’s Deployment Claim By Awwal Umar Kontagora The Commander of the Mining Marshals, Assistan...
…Challenges Suspended NSCDC Commandant’s Deployment Claim
By Awwal Umar Kontagora
The Commander of the Mining Marshals, Assistant Commandant of Corps (ACC) John Onoja Attah, has denied claims linking the specialised Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) unit to the September 16 operation at M.I. Wushishi Housing Estate in Minna, Niger State.
Onoja Attah also challenged the authority of the suspended Niger State Commandant, Suberu Siyaka Aniviye, to deploy Mining Marshals personnel for the operation.
In a statement issued by his office at the NSCDC National Headquarters in Abuja, Onoja Attah described claims attributed to Aniviye in a Daily Post publication dated October 16, 2026, as false and misleading.
He maintained that no Mining Marshals personnel participated in the operation, which is currently under investigation by the Justice Mohammed Commission of Inquiry.
Aniviye was quoted as saying that he visited the mining site on September 15 before deploying Mining Marshals personnel to the area.
However, Onoja Attah dismissed the assertion, arguing that it misrepresented the unit’s command structure and operational jurisdiction.
“No Mining Marshals operative is attached to the Niger State Command or to any State Command of the Corps for that matter,” he stated.
He explained that the unit operates exclusively from the National Headquarters under the direct command, control and operational directives of the NSCDC Commandant-General, in collaboration with the Ministry of Solid Minerals Development.
According to him, state commandants lack the authority to deploy Mining Marshals personnel for operations.
He added that the Commandant-General had, on several public occasions, stated that the Mining Marshals were not involved in the disputed operation.
Onoja Attah further said that, as the commander responsible for Mining Marshals operations, he was unaware of the incident until reports of the incident became public.
He argued that the alleged involvement of the unit was therefore inconsistent with its established chain of command and operational procedures.
“Our operational records confirm that at no time were Mining Marshals personnel deployed or involved in the said operation,” he said.
The commander warned against attempts to associate the unit with the deaths in custody currently under investigation, insisting that any determination of responsibility should be based on verifiable evidence.
The clarification comes amid heightened public scrutiny of the circumstances surrounding the deaths in Niger State and the investigation into the conduct of security personnel involved.
Onoja Attah’s statement seeks to distinguish the Mining Marshals institutionally from the operation under investigation, maintaining that responsibility should be established through credible evidence rather than unsubstantiated claims.
The commander also defended the unit’s operational record, describing its enforcement activities under the Nigerian Minerals and Mining Act, 2007, as professional and guided by established rules and procedures.
According to him, the unit has adhered strictly to its rules of engagement since its establishment, with no recorded human rights violations arising from its operations nationwide and no pending Fundamental Human Rights Enforcement suit against it in any Nigerian court.
He attributed the unit’s operational discipline to the standard operating procedures instituted under the leadership of the NSCDC Commandant-General, Prof. Ahmed Abubakar Audi, mni, OFR, and the Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dr Dele Alake.
Onoja Attah said the Mining Marshals remained committed to sanitising Nigeria’s solid minerals sector and would not allow what he described as erroneous publications to distract it from its statutory responsibilities.
He urged media organisations to verify information concerning the unit’s operations directly with its National Headquarters, stressing the importance of responsible reporting on security matters and allegations involving deaths in custody.
The commander’s rebuttal has brought renewed attention to questions surrounding the September 16 operation, including who authorised and conducted it and which security personnel were involved.
He maintained that these questions should be resolved through evidence, official deployment records and established command structures rather than claims that wrongly implicate a specialised unit.
As the commission continues its investigation, determining the facts and establishing individual responsibility remain critical. While the Mining Marshals have denied involvement in the operation, the inquiry is expected to establish the circumstances surrounding the incident and determine accountability based on its findings.
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