The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) has cleared the Commander of the Mining Marshals, Assistant Commandant of Corps (ACC) John Onoja Onoja, of any involvement in the disciplinary actions recently taken against some personnel of the Corps.
The NSCDC had announced the sanctioning of 79 officers for various acts of misconduct and the arrest of 12 suspects over offences including employment racketeering, certificate forgery and other criminal activities.
However, neither ACC John Onoja Onoja nor any matter relating to the controversial death of a Mining Marshals operative was listed among the disciplinary actions announced by the Corps.
The clarification comes amid continued public attention over the death of Deputy Superintendent of Corps (DSC) Agada Levi Agada, a Mining Marshals operative, whose death has generated multiple investigations and conflicting accounts.
Months earlier, Onoja had rejected a purported report linking officers under his command to the operative’s death and alleged suspicious financial transactions.
He described the report as false and misleading, alleging that the claims were part of a coordinated attempt to discredit the Mining Marshals and frustrate the Corps’ efforts to tackle illegal mining syndicates.
The latest disciplinary announcement by the NSCDC contains no indication that Onoja was found culpable or subjected to any administrative sanction in connection with Agada’s death.
Rather, the development distinguishes the Corps’ internal disciplinary proceedings from the separate criminal investigation into the death of the Mining Marshals operative.
The Mining Marshals, under Onoja’s leadership, remain involved in the Federal Government’s campaign against illegal mining, with the unit recording hundreds of arrests and prosecutions across the country.
Onoja has repeatedly alleged that powerful interests involved in illegal mining have attempted to discredit the unit and undermine its operations.