Stakeholders Want FG To Donate Customs Sea-going Vessels For Maritime Academies Training 

By Roland Ekama

 

For failing to utilise national assets in order to curb smuggling on the nation’s waterways, stakeholders from maritime academies have called on the federal government to donate the Nigeria Customs Service’s sea-going vessels to reputable institutions ,as part of efforts to build capacity for seafarers and cadets.

 

The two ocean going ships have been idling away within the Lagos waters since their deployment to Nigeria from Europe far back in 2014.

 

The vessels , namely: MV Group of Nine and MV. Customs Pride are sophisticated watercraft built with Roll Royce engines to comb the territorial waters in the service fight against smuggling .

 

But speaking against the lackluster attitude of management of the service headed by its Comptroller General, Hameed Ali, the stakeholders are clamouring for reputable maritime academies to take possession of the assets for optimal utilisation.

 

According to them,the vessels might have been out of class even as they reiterated that students of such schools will benefit immensely in  proffering solutions to sea time experience.

 

 

Registrar, National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders (NAGAFF), Mr. Francis Omotosho advocated that since the vessels are unutilized by the marine team of customs there was need to hand the ships over to some reputable maritime schools.

 

Omotosho noted the vessels have the capacity to training Nigerians youths and will further save cost of sending students overseas for sea time experience.

 

He said “If the vessels are bought with government money for Nigeria Customs Service and they refuse to use it, then it will be advisable that they give it out for training of Nigeria students who are studying nautical sciences related courses for the purpose of adequate sea time simulation and practical training.

 

 

On his part , Registrar , Ports and Terminals Management Academy of Nigeria (POTEMAN),Dr. Samuel Babatunde stressed the need for government to direct the customs to hand over the vessels to some of reputable maritime training schools

 

 

He said a Memorandum of Underetanding should also serve the purpose of training cadets adding that the idleness of the ships are colossal loss to the nation’s economy.

 

The POTEMAN Registrar said the sea-going vessels can bridge the gap of sea time experience noting that students will benefit from the ships if taken over maritime institutions  for training purposes.

 

“In as much as the Nigerian government through NIMASA couldn’t acquire training vessels for sea time, alternatively, the industry watchers call on government to donate abandoned vessels by Customs to Maritime Academies to bridge the gap of sea time experience is viable.

 

” At least, our cadets can have fair experience than non. However, effort should be put in place to see the relevance of the abandoned vessels if they are still relevant to the modem shipping practice.

 

“Most importantly, that they didn’t constitutes hazard to the trainers and the trainees respectively.

 

“Lastly, efforts should be put in place to ascertain their legal status before engagement in order to avoid trespassing on another person property, “Samuel added.