Niger State Governor, Alhaji Abubakar Sani Bello has decried the destruction of national monuments through the mining activities of Chinese companies in the state and the country in general.
Bello stated this while performing the groundbreaking ceremony of the Zuma Smart City and Resort in Chachi, behind Zuma Rock, Tafa Local Government Area in the state.
He said the foreigners have continued to mutilate national heritage sites with impunity.
According to him, “I doubt if any foreign company can go to China and destroy any monument there.”
Bello appealed to the Federal Government to look into the issue to ensure that sites such as the Zuma Rock and Aso Rock among others in the country are adequately protected.
“I would like to use this opportunity to appeal to the Federal Government to look into the activities of the multinational companies in order to stop them from mutilating our environmental national endowment with impunity”, he stated.
The governor explained that the state executive council made a deliberate effort to protect Zuma Rock and its environs by making it a “Zuma Rock Investment and Cultural City”, to attract investors and preserve it
“If the mining activity by the Chinese company had continued unchecked, the integrity of the rock would have been threatened, so I believe Zuma Rock is safe and with a resort here, eventually this place will become a smart city, it will become a recreational place and the people will enjoy the beauty of the rock, now with the interest Aso Savings and Loans has indicated on the project,” he said.
Speaking, Hajiya Risikatu Ahmed, the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, CEO, of ASO Savings and Loans disclosed plans by the company to develop a smart and sustainable city of over 2,500 units of mixed types of houses on 150 hectares of land.
