The Commander of the Mining Marshals, John Onoja Attah, has warned that Nigeria’s rapidly evolving security threats have surpassed the capacity of any single institution, insisting that strengthened inter-agency cooperation is now critical to national safety.

Speaking at the 2025 RazorNews Inter-Agency Cooperation Awards in Abuja on Thursday, Attah said criminal and terrorist networks have grown more sophisticated, transnational and technologically enabled, exploiting illegal mining, cyber tools, arms trafficking and cross-border logistics.

He described the solid minerals sector as a “critical economic lifeline” long targeted by criminal syndicates, adding that illicit mining has become “an accelerant feeding the machinery of terror.” According to him, the Mining Marshals were created to dismantle those illicit pipelines and reassert state control over vulnerable mining corridors.

Attah said the unit’s early successes—including the disruption of illegal mining hubs and the recovery of stolen mineral resources—were only possible through coordinated efforts with the military, police, DSS, EFCC and other agencies.

“These criminals operate without boundaries, without bureaucracies and without hesitation. To defeat such threats, no single institution—no matter how capable—can act alone,” he said.

The commander argued that Nigeria’s security system works like an interdependent structure, where weaknesses in one agency can compromise the entire architecture. He stressed that collaboration should be formalised through legislation mandating real-time intelligence sharing, joint operations, unified prosecution frameworks and shared training.

“Intelligence is the oxygen of counter-terrorism. When agencies share data in real time, threats are neutralised before they mature,” he added.

Attah said enhanced cooperation would also reduce operational costs, limit duplication of efforts and restore public trust in security institutions at a time when resources remain stretched.

Commending RazorNews for promoting inter-agency excellence, he said the awards help shift Nigeria’s security culture from rivalry to cooperation. He urged security agencies to emulate the unity exhibited by criminal networks.

“The enemies are united; we must be too,” he said, reaffirming the Mining Marshals’ commitment to working with all security and governmental partners to safeguard Nigeria’s mineral assets and curb insecurity.

Senior security officials and traditional leaders attended the event, including representatives of the Inspector General of Police and the Minister of Defence, as well as the Olowo of Iwo, Oba Adewale Akanbi.

Vanguard News