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…Intensifies Grassroot Safety Campaign, Increase Water Marshals To 350.
The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, National Inland Water Authority (NIWA), Bola Oyebamiji has said that in a move to promote efficiency and service delivery, the Authority had deployed several operational assets, including 15 boats of varying capacities and uses.
He added that the Authority has intensified grassroots safety campagn and increased its water marshal’s personnel from 80 to 350.
Oyebamiji disclosed this in Lagos at the weekend during an interactive session with journalists.
The NIWA MD/CEO said that part of the meeting was to brief the media on the direction NIWA had been taken through in the last one year of his appointment.
According to him, within one year, NIWA, through the supervisory effort of the Federal Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy under the leadership of Dr Gboyega Oyetola, had a new Water Transportation Code, 2023. “Within the same period, we have deployed several operational assets including 15 boats of varying capacities and uses to promote efficiency and service delivery. Similarly, we have provided greater incentives to our workers through the official commissioning of several capital projects to promote a better working environment. Not only this, we have continued to treat the welfare of our workers as a priority always.”
He however lamented that despite efforts and achievements, there was a sore point that had always put NIWA in a bad light.
This, according to him are the twin issues of safety and insecurity on the inland waterways, which he said always overshadowed every gain recorded by NIWA whenever it happens.
“To confront this headlong, we have reconsidered our safety campaign approach to focus more on the grassroots using community resources. Within one year, NIWA has carried out more grassroots safety campaign than at any other time within the same period. Also, we have deployed water marshals across different loading and offloading points in the country. It may interest you to know that within three months of its launch, we have increased the number of our water marshals from 80 to 350 personnel. Recently, these officers were directed to commence 24-hour surveillance within selected locations to arrest the ugly incident of night travel and overloading.
“Ladies and gentlemen, just yesterday in Abuja, we gathered the critical stakeholders in a meeting for several hours to evaluate the current challenges on inland waterways transportation and find possible solutions. The meeting which had in attendance the Honourable Commissioners of Transportation from more than 24 states, among other groups, highlighted several important measures that must be taken to arrest the twin issues of safety and insecurity on the inland waterways.”
Of note, according to him, was the need to increase the level of awareness and campaign within the sector.
He called on the media as opinion shapers, to partner with NIWA, in its mission to promote safer waterways through media advocacy.
He noted that of all the causes of accidents on the waterways, human error takes the lead.
The NIWA boss disclosed that a further evaluation revealed that poor attitude and blatant disregard for safety protocol accounted for the greatest cause of boat mishaps.
“We therefore call on you to join us in educating our people on the need to be safety conscious always.”
