Families of the 33 miners who died while in the custody of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) in Minna, Niger State, have been recommended to receive ₦30 million each in compensation, following an investigation into the incident.
The recommendation forms part of a proposed ₦1.4 billion compensation package for the families of the deceased and 41 survivors of the tragedy, which reportedly occurred last month after the young men were confined in a severely overcrowded detention facility.
The investigative committee also recommended the summary dismissal of Abdulhamid Salisu Kabara, the NSCDC Commandant in Niger State, under whose supervision the incident occurred, alongside officers who were on duty and directly involved in the incident.
Chairman of the 10-member investigative panel, Jonathan Kure, presented the committee’s report to the Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, on Tuesday in Abuja.
According to the recommendations, each of the 33 bereaved families should receive ₦30 million, while each of the 41 survivors should receive ₦10 million.
The proposed compensation package also includes educational support for the dependants of the deceased, medical rehabilitation for survivors, psychological support for affected families and a formal apology from the Federal Government.
The panel further recommended administrative sanctions for personnel whose failure to perform their duties contributed to the incident but whose actions or inactions were not directly responsible for the deaths.
In its findings, the committee attributed the fatalities to environmental asphyxia resulting from prolonged confinement in a severely overcrowded cell, worsened by heat stress and dehydration.
The panel also disclosed that the operation leading to the arrest of the suspects was conducted without an operational order or approval from the NSCDC national headquarters.
It consequently recommended institutional reforms within the corps to address the procedural and operational lapses that contributed to the tragedy.
The recommendations are aimed at providing relief to the affected families and survivors while ensuring accountability and preventing a recurrence of similar incidents.
