Mkpoikana Udoma
Port Harcourt — The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has strengthened collaboration with security agencies to tackle illegal mining activities and associated financial crimes in the North Central zone.
The move followed strategic courtesy visits by the new Zonal Director of the EFCC Ilorin Zonal Directorate, Victoria Ugo-Ali, to the Commandant of the 22 Armoured Brigade of the Nigerian Army, Brigadier General Nicholas Rume, and the Kwara State Director of the Department of State Services, Michael Oganwu, in Ilorin.
The visits, were aimed at strengthening inter-agency cooperation to combat corruption, illegal mining, banditry and terrorism financing in Kwara State and surrounding areas.
Speaking during the meeting with the Army commandant, Ugo-Ali described illegal mining as a growing threat to Nigeria’s economic stability and national security, stressing the need for coordinated enforcement to curb the activities of criminal networks involved in illicit mineral extraction.
She noted that illegal mining operations are often carried out by organised groups that evade regulatory oversight while depriving the country of significant revenue from its natural resources.
According to her, enhanced intelligence sharing, joint field operations and stronger protection of mining sites are essential to dismantle the networks driving illegal extraction across the country.
Ugo-Ali also warned that proceeds from unlawful mining activities are sometimes used to finance violent and extremist groups, highlighting the dangerous nexus between economic crimes and national security threats.
“Disrupting these financial flows remains central to the EFCC’s mandate, and it requires strong collaboration with the military to dismantle the entrenched criminal structures behind these activities,” she said.
Responding, Brigadier General Rume commended the EFCC for its proactive engagement and reaffirmed the Brigade’s readiness to support anti-corruption and economic crime initiatives within its operational jurisdiction.
He pledged continued cooperation through joint task operations, timely intelligence exchange and coordinated capacity-building programmes to strengthen enforcement against economic sabotage.
During her separate visit to the DSS office, the EFCC zonal director emphasised the importance of intelligence-driven collaboration in tackling corruption, financial crimes and the emerging threat of banditry in parts of Kwara and neighbouring states.
She explained that corruption and illicit financial activities often serve as enablers of insecurity by providing funding channels for criminal and extremist groups.
In his remarks, Oganwu assured the Commission of the DSS’s full support, noting that the fight against corruption, banditry and terrorism financing requires sustained collaboration among security agencies.
He pledged actionable intelligence and closer strategic cooperation with the EFCC to strengthen enforcement efforts and promote security and stability in the state.
