For seafarers to get proper remuneration from their employers there is the need for both the ratings and senior officers to speak with one voice, irrespective of their positions on board vessels, so says the national coordinator of the International Transport Workers Federation, (ITF), Comrade Henry Akinrolabu.
Akinrolabu gave the charge on Tuesday when a delegation of ITF international paid a courtesy visit to the Merchant Navy Officers and Water Transport Senior Staff Association in secretariat in Lagos.
For seafarers to get proper remuneration from their employers there is the need for both the ratings and senior officers to speak with one voice, irrespective of their positions on board vessels, so says the national coordinator of the International Transport Workers Federation, (ITF), Comrade Henry Akinrolabu.
Akinrolabu gave the charge on Tuesday when a delegation of ITF international paid a courtesy visit to the Merchant Navy Officers and Water Transport Senior Staff Association in secretariat in Lagos.
According to the coordinator, employers will continue to see the seafarers as cheap labour when compared to their foreign counterparts until they are able to come together to fight and effect a change.
He also decried the high disparity between the wages paid foreign seafarers and their Nigerian counterparts and advised that the unions should put their employers in check.
He observed that the dockworkers are well respected in the maritime sector because of the role their union plays, adding that for the seafarers to gain recognition, there is the need to work in harmony.
The ITF representative also charged the senior officers of the seafaring fraternity to shun egoism, pointing out that collaboration among junior and senior cadres will bring about a formidable force when dealing with the employers and ship owners.
He lamented the poor contract entered into between seafarers and their employers, saying lack of basic adequate information by seamen has been a major setback in the course of signing contracts.
The coordinator also appealed the national president of the merchant navy outfit; Engineer Mathew Alalade to collaborate with the President General of the Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria (MWUN) , Comrade Tony Nted Emmanuel on the need to assist seafarers when issues surrounding contract signing with their respective employers come up.
He also raised the alarm of fake ITF officers who board ships, urging ship captains to scrutinize such officers’ identity for documentation purposes.
"The problem we have is that we want ITF to provide jobs for us and I use to tell them that it is not done like that, because we are the cause of our problems, our jobs are in our hands, but we refuse to move on".
He urged seafaring unions to speak with one voice on how to better their lot, stressing that betrayal and selfish interest is another problem faced by them.
"If ITF discover that you are fighting a good fight, they will make a strong case for you and until we come together this with one voice, I bet you we will achieve greatness".
Responding to the coordinator’s remarks, president of the merchant navy outfit,
Engineer Matthew Alalade blamed the master mariners for what he called their ego.
Alalade disclosed that the master mariners see themselves above all seafaring unions, yet whenever there are issues, they fall back to the merchant navy outfit for solutions.
According to him, there is a cordial relationship between the Maritime Workers Union if Nigeria and the Merchant Navy Officers and Water Transport Senior Staff Association.
He reiterated that the merchant navy outfit supersedes all marine organisations, including Nigerian Association of Master Mariners and Marine Engineers Association even as he added that "whenever there are critical issues, you will see the master marines coming to seek assistance from us"
The ITF delegation from London was led by Maltida Adjagba, Mr. Hamani Amadou, while
the coordinator Henry Akinrolabu in Nigeria was assisted by 2nd Engineer Deborah
Akinware.
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