An Abuja-based miner, Dahiru Salihu, known as Mundasa, has denied an allegation by the commander of the Mining Marshals in the Federal Capital Territory, John Attah, that he went into hiding after an alleged illegal mining operation.
Mr Onaja-led Mining Marshals which is under the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), accused Mr Salihu who is the founder of Mundasa Global Limited, a mining firm, of impersonating NSCDC officials.
Mr Salihu in a statement to Peoples Gazette on Sunday, said that he is “a known miner whose documents are intact and duly obtained from the appropriate Nigerian authorities.”
He accused the NSCDC of unprofessionalism, noting that he was never invited by the NSCDC before he was declared wanted.
“Nobody called me. Nobody invited me or sent any letter to me,” Mr Salihu said.
The Gazette earlier reported that Mining Marshals arrested five men who were Mr Salihu’s workers, and accused them of illegal mining activities and impersonation in the Kuje area of the FCT.
Those arrested by the Mining Marshals on 27 December 2025 at Kebi Mangoro, Kuje Area Council on the allegations of l illegal mining included Muhammed Aliyu, 39; Abdulrahman Hashimu, 32; Tahir Muhammed, 43; Awaje Abduljalal, 19; and Kabiru Adamu, 38.
Mr Onoja had noted that the use of an NSCDC-branded Hilux vehicle by the suspects posed a direct risk to public trust and national security.
In a related statement on Sunday, Mr Salihu’s lawyer, Douglas Najime, denied the allegations of illegal mining and impersonation involving use of a privately owned Toyota Hilux vehicle branded with the colours and insignia of NSCDC to evade security checkpoints and intimidate stakeholders, which were brought against Mr Salihu and his workers.
Mr Najime stated, “I represent Mundasa as their external council and handles their legal affairs and overall incidental issues that relate to compliance and regulations. Now, Mundasa global company’s vehicle that they donated to civil defence was involved in an incident where one of their officers, their manager, drove the vehicle in the absence or without carrying along the civil defence officers that are attached to the vehicle. And the vehicle was impounded by civil defence officers under the Office of Mining Marshals.”
He further noted that he interfaced with the mining marshals’ commander, Mr Onoja on more than three occasions concerning the development, and on no occasion was his client invited.
He said, “He never, ever requested the presence of Mohammed Salihu, the Managing Director of Mundasa Global Company Limited. Nobody requested the presence of Mr Salihu. Nobody asked him to appear there. If not he was and he is available. In fact, he was at the site even today, he is still at his own site.”
