A former Managing Director of Nigerian Shippers Council (NSC), Dr. Kingsley Usoh has faulted the implementation of Cabotage Act, saying that it has been unfavourable to indigenous ship owners.
Usoh gave this verdict in Lagos last week at the public presentation of a book titled: "The Politics of Shipping and the Nigerian Economy," which he wrote.
The former Shippers Council boss consequently called for a return to the drawing board by those who had a hand in its passage and implementation.
According to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), Usoh, who is the chairman of Carix Shipping Company, said that there was need to urgently stop the impending collapse of the Cabotage Act, which he described, as “half-baked and not properly spelt out."
He added that the finance aspect of the Act needed to be fine-tuned in order to have a good coastal shipping regime compared to what obtained all over the world.
Usoh noted that the inclusion of the waiver clause in the Cabotage Act would give room for corruption, noting that the nation was being made a laughing stock by foreign maritime nations.
Usoh, however, hoped that Nigeria would wholly manage her Cabotage trade in future, adding that he also had a dream of a Nigeria that would build and repair her vessels.
"I dream of a Nigeria that would add capacity to training of her seafarers and effectively man her vessels, as well as, have a secure, safe coast lines and territorial waters," he said.
In a review of the book, Mrs Lola Okwuagwu, who represented Mr. Louis Mbanefo, SAN, said that the book gave insights into the different aspects of the problems of shipping in Nigeria.
Mbanefo said that shipping had remained where it was due to lack of a blueprint, observing that the book met international standards and was produced in a readable form.
The book focused on International Ship and Port Facility Security (ISPS) code, national shipping policy, congestion, Cabotage and other maritime issues.
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