Governor Aminu Masari of Katsina State has advocated the exploration of solid mineral deposits to create job opportunities and boost the national economy as a panacea to insecurity.
Masari made the call in a statement issued by Malam Abdu Labaran, the Director-General, Media and Publicity to the governor, on Monday evening in Katsina.
It said Masari stated this when he paid a courtesy visit to the Minister of Mines and Steel Development, Mr Olamilekan Adegbite, in Abuja.
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The governor noted that the agitations for resource control and restructuring would be addressed if the nation’s resources were fully harnessed and exploited.
According Masari, every state in the country is sufficiently endowed with one mineral resource or the other, but they were not fully tapped.
He solicited for the support of the Federal Ministry of Mines and Steel Development to assist in harnessing the huge solid mineral deposits in Katsina state.
The governor pledged to provide an enabling environment for the exploration of the minerals by genuine investors.
The statement also quoted the minister as reminding state governments that mineral resources, wherever they are found, are constitutionally entrusted to the Federal Government to manage on behalf of Nigerians.
Olamoleka said it was therefore wrong for any state to claim ownership of mineral resources found within its territory. (NAN)