That was the grim declaration of some teenage and adult miners who returned to the M.I. Wushishi mining site in Minna, Niger State, even as the mass arrest of suspected illegal miners was still underway, insisting that they had no other means of livelihood.
The miners returned to the site despite the arrest of scores of their colleagues by the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, NSCDC, and the subsequent deaths of 37 of those detained.
Many of the miners, including boys, women and adults, were seen working at the site on Saturday, digging for gold with shovels, picks and other hand tools.
Some of them said they had returned to the mining site on the same day the NSCDC carried out the mass arrests, arguing that abandoning mining would leave them without any source of income.
Their return came after the NSCDC conducted operations around the Lt. Gen. Mohammed Inuwa Wushishi Estate in Minna on September 15 and 16.
The corps said the operation led to the arrest of suspected illegal miners.
Suberu Aniviye, the suspended NSCDC commandant in Niger State, subsequently said “scores” of the detained suspects were found dead in the early hours of Thursday following a suspected outbreak of disease.
However, the deaths did not stop some miners from returning to the site.
During a visit to the M.I. Wushishi mining site on Saturday, no security personnel were seen in the area, while miners continued their activities.
Some scooped loose soil into sacks and pans, while others used a flowing stream to separate the excavated material. Piles of freshly dug earth and muddy soil were scattered across the site.
One of the miners, Salisu DanMallam, said he was not at the site when the arrests were made but stayed away for two days because of the NSCDC operation.
“I wasn’t here when the incident happened on Monday and they made the arrest,” he said.
“I did not come out again since they made the arrest. I was not here on Tuesday and Wednesday because of the way the civil defence raided and that was why I did not come out.”
DanMallam, who said he had been mining in the area for more than 15 years, said staying away from the site had immediately affected his livelihood.
“If you don’t come out for a day or two you will feel it because there are no profitable jobs,” he said.
He said the miners had developed close relationships over the years, describing them as a family despite not being related by blood.
“We just treat each other like family here,” he said.
“I don’t have direct blood among those who died in the custody of NSCDC.”
DanMallam said he was still unable to establish the number of miners who had died or remained in detention following the arrests.
“I have not ascertained the number of people who are dead or alive. I know that some people were arrested but I haven’t seen them,” he said.
