“Tinubu criminalising poor miners” — Atiku questions 37 deaths in NSCDC custody

Atiku Abubakar, the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress, has accused Bola Tinubu's administration of criminalizing poor artisanal miners while demanding answers regarding the deaths of 37 suspected illegal miners in NSCDC custody in Niger State. He questioned the management of Nigeria's mineral resources and highlighted the persistent poverty in gold-rich communities. Atiku called on the Federal Government to explain the status of the Presidential Artisanal Gold Mining Development Initiative (PAGMI) and to account for the deaths of the miners.