In the aftermath of a devastating incident linked to illegal mining in Bukuru, the sister of the deceased, Sati Mildred, has come forward with heartbreaking details of the tragic event that claimed her brother’s life.

In a powerful statement, she recounted how a politician’s actions led to the death of her brother, Emma, in what has now become a community-wide outcry for justice.

Sati wrote,

“According to him, he said he owns the land, which is true, and he didn’t want people mining there. These boys are boys he calls to work for him.” Despite the politician’s claim that he did not want mining on the property, it was revealed that he had been conducting mining operations in an enclosed space to avoid detection. “After working for him, these boys later went to hustle for themselves, not even in his enclosed room but in one of the holes they had earlier dug for him,” she explained.

It was during this independent digging that tragedy struck. “Information got to him, and he came with his assistant, Bala, shot in the air, and scared those ones outside. So those ones fled,” Sati recalled. But Emma and a few others remained in one of the mining holes. Despite the neighbors’ warnings that there were still boys inside, the politician reportedly ignored their pleas. “All effort to convince him not to light the tire fell on deaf ears,” she wrote, describing how the politician proceeded to push a burning tire into the hole, filling it with toxic smoke.

Emma struggled to escape but was too weakened by the fumes. “Emma struggled out, but the smoke from the tire made him weak. He couldn’t move, and that was how he died,” Sati recounted, heartbroken. The next day, residents discovered his lifeless body near the entrance of the hole.

In a wave of grief and anger, the community, especially women and children, marched to the home of Amb. Austin Mang Gadong, the politician at the center of this tragedy. Sati added that military personnel and police were later dispatched to calm the situation. “On hearing what happened, they pleaded we all go home and claimed Austin Gadong is in their custody. He turned himself in, and Emma’s corpse was taken to Ola Hospital,” she wrote, expressing doubts about whether the politician is truly being held accountable.

Sati’s emotional account sheds light on the gravity of the situation, as the community demands justice for Emma and an end to the illegal mining practices that have already claimed too many lives.