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Assistant Inspector General of Police in charge of maritime, Mr. Musa Katsina has decried the increased cases of stowaways on Nigeria waters which he attributed to the porosity nation’s maritime boundaries.
AIG Kastina emphasized this in Lagos last week when he paid a working visit to the Nigerian Shippers Council (NSC).
Katsina, noted that on his assumption of office as AIG Maritime, he discovered that there are certain crimes that have become accepted as a norm. However, he stressed that issue of stowaway on the nation’s waters especially in Lagos remains a great danger to the maritime sector and the nation as a whole.
“On assumption of office, I decided to give a trial on the safety of our waterways and when I anchored my searchlight on Tin Can Island ports; we were confronted with a very disturbing phenomenon where group of young men plan, decide and with criminal intend to travel outside Nigeria without valuable document.
“In attempt to execute the mission recently, a group took off from the a riverine community which is Snake Island, snatched a boat from a fisherman, paddled the boat to a Malaysia ship in the middle of the night and went in beside the propeller and concealed themselves in a little apartment with criminal intent to travel out of Nigeria”, Kastina narrated.
According to the AIG, investigations have shown that some of the stowaways have died in the process of attempting to travel out via ships and their remains thrown into the oceans.
Katsina stressed that the anomaly must not be handled with kids’ gloves as he pointed out that the process of stowaways also leads to drug trafficking, arms dealing, sea piracy, kidnapping, and other illicit practices.
According to him, the Nigerian Shippers’ Council remains the pillar of all maritime agencies of the government and the police cannot perform effectively without seeking necessary support from the economic regulator of the ports.
Meanwhile, the Executive Secretary of NSC, Barr. Hassan Bello noted that the visit by the police boss was timely as he promised that the Council would furnish the Police with information and ideas about the maritime industry.
Bello stated that no agency could succeed without the support of other stakeholders even as he added that some of the functions of the Police involve safety and security of lives and properties.
Bello affirmed that the Council as an economic regulator of the ports ensures efficiency and competitiveness.
