Shinkafi demands account of Zamfara gold reserve, questions legality of Matawalle's gold trade during mining ban

A former National Secretary of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) and Zamfara North senatorial aspirant, Dr Sani Abdullahi Shinkafi, has demanded a full account of the Zamfara State Gold Reserve Initiative launched under former Governor Bello Matawalle.

Shinkafi, speaking through the Patriots for the Advancement of Peace and Social Development, is asking for details of the quantity of gold acquired, where it's being held, and what was handed over to Governor Dauda Lawal in 2023.

The initiative drew national attention in October 2020 when Matawalle presented 31 kilograms of gold and precious stones to then President Muhammadu Buhari. He said the reserve had been acquired to strengthen Zamfara's financial base. The group estimates the current value of that gold at about N5.95 billion.

But three years after Matawalle left office, Shinkafi says nothing has been heard of the initiative. "It's curious that three years after Bello Matawalle left office as governor of Zamfara State, nothing has been heard of his administration's well-publicised Gold Reserve Initiative," the statement said.

A major plank of the challenge centres on the Federal Government's suspension of mining activities in Zamfara between 2019 and 2025. The suspension was part of efforts to tackle insecurity and illegal mining. "The Federal Government and security experts agreed that illegal mining of gold was one of the root causes of over a decade armed banditry in Zamfara State," Shinkafi said.

Against that backdrop, the group questioned how the government sourced gold from local miners while mining activities were officially suspended. "In view of the Federal Government's suspension of solid minerals mining from 2019 to 2025, who approved then Governor Bello Matawalle government's engagement in gold trade which he claimed he bought from local miners?" the statement asked.

Shinkafi demanded details of the quantity and value of gold acquired under the initiative, where it was kept, whether it was transferred to the succeeding administration, and the miners, companies and licences linked to the purchases.

The group gave the Zamfara State Government 14 days to publish the handover notes and transition committee report relating to the initiative. It warned that failure to do so would prompt petitions to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU) and the Office of the National Security Adviser (NSA).

"We call on the current Zamfara State Government to publicly publish the handover note and transition committee report where gold purchased by Matawalle's administration were stated and where the Zamfara State Gold Reserve Initiative is kept," Shinkafi said.

"Take notice that failure to publish the said documents within 14 days, we'll be left with no option but to report same to the EFCC, ICPC, NFIU and NSA to thoroughly investigate the legality or otherwise of the Bello Matawalle government's engagement in solid minerals at the time the Federal Government had suspended mining activities in Zamfara State."