By Johnson Adebowale
The Commander-General of Merchant Sail Navy, Captain John Linus Okorokwo, has called on the Nigerian government to engage professionals in managing the security and safety of water transportation in the country.
He gave the charge in Lagos recently at the passing-out parade of recruits and promotion of officers to head various departments of the organisation. The 39 recruits were comprised of 16 officers from Lagos and 23 from Ogun State command.
In his remarks, Okoronkwo tasked the recruits to contribute to the organisation’s effective operation, which is to protect life and property.
He said: “By the 10th of December, the organisation will be three years legally registered and operating, and for an organization like this to function well we need to gadget ourselves and establish the do’s and don’ts of our operation, which has to be our constitution. The constitution will be made ready and issued to the officers on the anniversary day. “
He said, in order to have an effective organisational structure, several offices and departments have been created, such as the discipline department, called Sail Navy Police, the operational department, the intelligence department, the search and rescue department and the legal department.
He further said: “We have professionals with us. So, the legal department, for instance, is made up of members that are barristers at law. We have several professional personnel, such as engineers, doctors, accountants, and so on, that are citizens of this country, among us. So, we have to hand over such positions to them because they are best qualified to handle them. Those with this high level of professional knowledge are promoted today to become senior officers, and their office is handed over to them. They are to be guided in their duty as stipulated in our constitution and they are expected not to abuse or misuse their position. “
He bemoaned the recent Lagos boat accident, which resulted in the death of innocent citizens. He said the time has come for the government to bring in professionals to regulate the activities of the maritime industry.
Okoronkwo said: “This is Nigeria and what should be expected of us all is to ensure we value ourselves. We should be known for doing what is right at all times. The number one objective of our organisation is to protect life and property. The police can do that, even ordinary civilians can do it, but a duly certified and registered professional organisation like us is expected to be engaged to manage the affairs of maritime activities. A right peg should be put in the right hole and not otherwise.
“Part of our mandate is to regulate maritime activities and to provide professional maritime training and security. We are registered to carry out this objective.
“I made a statement after the incident where I said, if the government stands to support MSN as a reserve and deploys us, we can go in and regulate and ensure smooth and safe operation of water transportation across the country because we have the professionals as members.
“The jetty operators would be issued with safety apparatus such as life jackets and life vests for the passengers. Or how would someone operate or sail from one jetty to another without the required safety apparatus? If we are deployed, we would not only issue the apparatus but check if the items have expired and the time they need to be renewed. And with the aid of a database, the manifest would be programmed and would be viewed and verified by our officers at the next jetty where the boat would be anchored. This ensures that the passengers that started the journey are the same ones that are successfully on board at the end. And where there is an accident, a diverse procedure is needed; a speed boat, trained divers that would go in and rescue the affected passenger, would be put in place. This is not the work of the Nigerian Navy. They are armed, and their duty is to ensure the territorial integrity of the nation, fighting against pirates, apprehending those involved in oil theft and so on. Maritime transportation safety is not even the responsibility of the Nigeria Civil Defense and task force, which are in charge of generating tax revenue for governments.”
“Most of our officers are established professionals from different fields, and they are in this organisation to support and ensure the goals of our organisation are achieved, even though our work is presently on a voluntary basis. So, the benefits we enjoy presently are voluntary. “We lean on ourselves; we have been supporting ourselves. We want the government to come in and take over our operation so that our officers are well compensated.”
The guests at the event were treated to a colourful parade by the officers and had Lagos commandant, Obimeze Zion, and his Ogun State counterpart, Ayuba Makolo, in attendance.