Borno State Governor, Babagana Umara Zulum, has said the state lost electricity distribution wires worth billions of naira to metal scavengers, including materials used for a power line project valued at over ₦3 billion.
Zulum said the loss was among the security and infrastructure concerns that forced his administration to ban scrap metal trading in the state.
The governor disclosed this over the weekend while meeting with scrap metal dealers, whom he urged to submit proposals on how they could continue their businesses without threatening security or damaging public infrastructure.
He explained that the ban was not intended to deprive traders of their means of livelihood but to protect public assets and address security risks linked to their activities.
“We spent more than ₦3 billion to connect an electricity distribution line from Damaturu to Maiduguri, but unfortunately, we lost all the wires to metal scavenging activities,” Zulum said.
He added that the activities had also exposed scavengers to danger, particularly in communities where security conditions remained unsafe for civilian activities.
“Before the ban, hundreds of your members were killed while scavenging for metals in villages that were not yet safe for civilian activities,” he said.
The governor further alleged that security intelligence indicated that insurgents were using scrap metal trading channels to sell stolen materials.
He said security intelligence indicated that insurgents were using scrap metal dealers to sell looted materials, adding that his administration could not ignore such threats for political reasons.
Zulum stressed that his administration had no personal interest in stopping the businesses.
He added that the decision was taken in the interest of public safety and the protection of state infrastructure.
He said he was concerned about the impact of the restriction on traders and did not want anyone to lose their livelihood unnecessarily.
“We have allowed genuine operators to evacuate the scrap metal they collected before the ban from designated locations to reduce the impact of the restriction on their businesses,” Zulum said.