An Attorney at Law with Okon Efut (SAN) and Associates, Noel Ovansa Anate has described as “rubbish” the sum of N5,00,000 offered by CNC Quarry, Gosa, to the family of Istifanus Yunana, a mine site worker who died of electrocution following the failure of the company to provide him with hand gloves.
The human rights activist who spoke to Blueprint exclusively in Abuja, further tasked the supervising ministry of the quarrying sub sector – Federal Ministry of Mines and Steel Development to respond and carry out its regulatory role, even as he challenged the ministry to put in place strategies that would ensure that due compensation is paid to the family of the victim.
According to the Attorney, “It is my very personal judgment that five hundred thousand naira only is too small as compensation for loss of a life if indeed the life was lost as a consequence of the failure of an institution to put in place strategies to avert the loss of life,” he said, stating that there are cases where millions of naira have been awarded for cases of permanent disability, let alone death.
According to Noel, “it need not be the statutory role of the MMSD to compensate victims, but in situations where accidents arose as a result of the ministry failure to enforce the rules, it is not bad if the government gets involved in the compensation issues so that family of such victims get their due from the companies.”
The law is very succinct on issues of compensation, he said, adding that the sum of five hundred thousand is inadequate.
