Eugene Nweke (NAGAFF President)
Eugene Nweke (NAGAFF President)
If there is any law that can benefit Nigeria by way of capacity building initiative, it is the Cabotage law, it was envisaged to promote and empower the indigenous operators, it was aimed to ensure that any vessel plying our waters must be manned by Nigerians and crewed by Nigerians, the idea is to make our shipping industry better, but you see, over time in this country we have people that come into power and what they conceive is to front for their foreign counterparts and use their contact to undue an existing legislation, so Cabotage has to do with the political administration of the country. However, whether the Act has met our priority as a nation or not, this is not enough for anybody to say Cabotage should be scrapped off, we are in a democratic setting, it is a transition, one government will come into power and see the need to actually equip and empower Nigerians, therefore we are saying that Cabotage Act has come to stay, why it became major issue is because there were not enough ocean-going vessels owned by Nigerians, you can see the politics being played with the CVFF, if our national carriers are here it would have also been a stepping stone to encouraging indigenous practitioners, the competition would have encouraged them, but today they do not have funds.
Comrade Umar Jimoh (President, NPA Senior Staff Association)
The coming of the Cabotage law was appropriate, it is just like any other laws in Nigeria, we need to police it because if it is not well policed, things will just go the way everybody likes, the law is meant for the indigenous ship owners to take their rightful share of jobs in the maritime industry, especially in shipping, you know that there are other things that must be ready before the law can work, if these indigenous players cannot access funds, it will be very difficult for them to acquire vessels, if they have no vessels to carry Nigerian share of cargo, all they will do is to sell it back to the foreigners, at the end of the day everything goes back to the foreigners. As it is now, they are using this law to front for foreigners, this is what the Federal government should have looked into, the government itself can call on investors to invest in the sector.
Ismail Aniemu (Maritime Journalist)
The Cabotage Act in my view is worth it, we agree that it has not met stakeholder’s expectations, but with zero political interference and curbing the abuses of ministerial waivers with a few amendments, the law can improve the fortunes of indigenous investors and professionals in the maritime industry.
John Okpono (Assist. Sec. Merchant Navy Assoc. )
One very good thing about this Act is that it is for the good of the Nigerian seafarers, but if you look at Nigeria we have one problem, and the problem is implementation and maintenance, the Cabotage Act says that ships should be manned by Nigerians, but today there is no knowledge transfer because no foreigner has ever trained a Nigeria crew with the aim of them taking over the duty, another thing we are having is the issuance of waivers, we are now mistaking payment of waivers to certificate of waivers, the whole law is about indigenization, but implementation is the problem and this will continue because we have no national carrier. The law is a good one for Nigeria, I believe Rome was not built in a day, but there are conditions that must be met before the Cabotage law can be effective, there must be provision for a national carrier either through purchase of vessels or a bilateral agreement between NIMASA and the shipping companies operating in Nigeria, for them to absorb at least two cadets on their vessels.
Aikoroje James (Acting Rector, Global Maritime Academy)
The Cabotage Act meant well for the local operators which are the indigenous ship owners but it has not actually worked out successfully. NIMASA and the stakeholders are not playing the game properly therefore it not worth it in way because since its establishment Nigerians have not gained from it at all. For example foreign vessels are predominant in our waters; the seafarers are not engaged in any form. The objective has not worked, though it is not a failure because what we are experiencing at the moment is not what it should be.
Matthew Alalade (President Merchant Navy)
The purpose of the Cabotage Act is to encourage indigenous participation in the shipping community of Nigeria, but the way it has been executed in Nigeria is slow and the CVFF is there not yet disbursed but I think NIMASA want to be careful in that regard because the first one that they disbursed before the Cabotage Act was not properly put in the right perspective. The Act is worth it, but we must do it with sincerity so that it can serve the purpose of its establishment, which is; to profit the seafarers, ship owners and Nigerians in general. The Act is important to shipping development in the country but it is unfortunate that the Nigerian factor is the major problem. Example maintenance culture of the vessels if acquired, putting it in class are also some of Nigeria factor. So right from inception, the Act has been faulty.
Nwagbara Osuala (Maritime Lawyer)
The Cabotage Act is a very good legislature for the advancement of the maritime industry in Nigeria. If you take a look at the objectives of the Cabotage Act, you will see that it is aimed at developing capacity in the sector and it is also aimed to give Nigerians the opportunity to man vessels, build vessels and to own vessels. In all of this, it is for empowerment, in terms of technical skills, by way of employment for Nigerians and also financial empowerment for the economy of the country. Again the effect will be of more buoyant to the economy. So from the perspective and objective of the Act, it is a very good piece of legislation and I am aware that NIMASA has stepped up enforcement, because it is hard for vessels to trade in Nigerian waters and go away without been caught. To me the objective is worth all the efforts that we have been through all the years, the Act has been promulgated and I think over all, it is for the best interest of Nigerians and I must say it is worth it.
Theo Johnson (Seafarer)
The Cabotage Act is very good for the industry because it encourages indigenous participation in the maritime sector of the country. Though stakeholders have not benefitted from the scheme but with time it will yield results and I believe that apart from the CVFF, seafarers will be employed in their thousands and the economy will profit from the Act as well. I believe that in no time the Cabotage Act will yield dividends.
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