FG Inaugurates Panel to Probe Deaths of 37 Miners in NSCDC Custody
The Federal Government has inaugurated a 10-member Independent Investigative Committee to investigate the circumstances surrounding the reported deaths of 37 people in the custody of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) in Niger State.
The committee was inaugurated in Abuja on Tuesday, September 22, 2026, by the Minister of Interior, Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, on the directive of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
Speaking at the inauguration, Tunji-Ojo charged the committee to conduct its investigation independently and without interference, saying its primary responsibility was to establish the truth behind the deaths.
He described justice as the “best gift” the country could offer the families of the deceased, stressing that the government owed the victims and their relatives a duty to establish what happened.
The minister commended President Tinubu for directing the immediate constitution of the panel and praised its members for accepting the assignment despite many of them having retired after decades of public service.
He said the committee’s mandate includes establishing the identities of the deceased; investigating and documenting the circumstances surrounding their arrest and detention; determining the cause and manner of death through appropriate medical and forensic examinations; and establishing whether negligence, misconduct, complicity or any breach of duty occurred.
The committee is also expected to recommend appropriate disciplinary measures, compensation where applicable, and steps to prevent a recurrence.
Tunji-Ojo directed the NSCDC leadership and all relevant officers to provide the committee with full cooperation, while ordering that all records and material evidence relating to the incident be preserved and made available.
Read Also:
He warned against any attempt to destroy or conceal evidence, intimidate witnesses or obstruct the investigation, saying such actions would be treated as serious offences.
“We owe you the truth. This committee will give you the truth. No officer, no matter how highly placed, will be shielded if found culpable,” the minister assured Nigerians.
The committee is chaired by a former Deputy Director-General of the Department of State Services, Mr Jonathan Kure (rtd), while Prof Isa Hayatu Chiroma (SAN), former Director-General of the Nigerian Law School, serves as secretary.
Other members are a retired Assistant Inspector-General of Police, Hosea Hassan Karma; Professor Olayinka Buhari, a professor of histopathology and former Chief Medical Director of the University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital; Secretary to the Niger State Government, Alhaji Abubakar Usman; and a retired Federal Permanent Secretary, Alhaji Idris Kuta.
Others are the National Secretary of the Miners Association of Nigeria, Alhaji Liman Sulaiman; lawyer and human rights activist, Mr Deji Adeyanju; Blueprint Newspaper representative, Mrs Zainab Suleiman Okino; and public affairs analyst, Dr George Agbakahi.
Responding on behalf of the committee, Kure described the appointment as a call to national service rather than a privilege.
He assured Nigerians and the families of the deceased that the committee would approach the assignment with open minds and without being influenced by sentiments or media speculation.
Kure said the panel would base its findings strictly on facts established during its investigation and pledged that its integrity would remain intact throughout the exercise.
Also speaking, the committee’s secretary, Chiroma, thanked President Tinubu and the Minister of Interior for the confidence reposed in the members, assuring that they would conduct an independent, impartial, fair and just inquiry.
The committee is expected to commence its investigation immediately and submit its report within two weeks.
By PRNigeria
