Oluyinka Onigbinde
Findings by Shipping Position Daily have revealed that one week after the Federal High Court sitting in Port Harcourt Rivers state freed the 26 crew of MT Heroic Idun, after settling for a plea bargain in the sum of $15 million as restitution to the country, the ship and crew are yet to be free, even though they have met one of the bail conditions.
The bail conditions which include payment of N5 million as a penalty for the charge and $ 15 million as restitution to the country also include public apologies made in the print and electronic media in Nigeria and Llyod’s list. The crew and vessel of the ship have been detained since August 2022.
The public apology is one of the conditions that were given by the Federal High Court sitting in Port Harcourt in Rivers state, for the release of
Shipping Position Daily confirmed that the owners of the ship tendered the public apology on Lloyd List last Friday. But there was no evidence that the remaining conditions had been met.
hRecall that the bail conditions include payment of N5 million as a penalty for the charge and $ 15 million as restitution to the country including public apologies made in the print and electronic media in Nigeria and Llyod’s list.
hIn the apology, the ship’s owners admitted error in the ship’s decision to evade arrest in Nigeria after allegedly sighted stealing crude oil in one of the oil terminals in the Niger Delta.
The public apology by the owners of the vessel on Lloyd’s list and which was sighted by our correspondent reads in part: “The owners, on behalf of their vessel and crew, wish to publicly apologise to the Federal Government of Nigeria for that report and express their sincere regret for the difficulties presented to the navy and any embarrassment that may have resulted from this incident. At no time did the owners wish to undermine the reputation of the Nigerian Navy or the efforts undertaken by the Nigerian Navy in countering piracy and oil theft in Nigerian waters.
“Following issuance of the court order on May 9, 2023, the owners are pleased that this unfortunate incident has now been resolved and are grateful for the Nigerian authorities’ assistance in reaching this conclusion.
“We look forward to being able to repatriate our crew back to their families and to successful future trading activities within Nigeria” the owners stated.
However, our correspondent could not confirm any corresponding apology in any Nigerian newspaper as at press time, as well as payment of $15 million as restitution to the country, and an additional N5 million.
Recall that the Chief of Naval Staff. Vice Admiral Awwal Gambo had at a recent event vowed that the Navy will not release the vessel and its crew until they meet all the bail conditions.
Checks by our Correspondent over the weekend also revealed that the vessel MT Heroic Idun with Callsign V7A2342 is still in the custody of the Nigeria Navy and was yet to be released.
Our correspondent also confirmed that the MT Heroic Idun owned by Idun Maritime Ltd, a subsidiary of Ray Carriers had initially paid a sum of $2 million to the government of Equatorial Guinea where the vessel was initially arrested for failing to display the correct flag in expectations, before it was escorted to Nigeria despite complaints from the lawyers acting for the owners that the move was unlawful.
Further findings by our correspondent also revealed that the vessel may be losing about $80,000 daily in the last eight months after missing trading when the VLCC spot rate went from negative territory to a peak of nearly $80,000 a day. This is according to the Baltic Exchange time charter equivalent rate checked by our correspondent last weekend.
Meanwhile a maritime lawyer; Barr. Nwagbara Osuala has described the case of Heroic Idun as a conspiracy of state power with itself. He argued that the effectiveness of the SPOMO Act was not put to test despite the trial of the crew and vessel. He said the case qualified for one which should have been resolved without involving the court at all.
He explained that the trial, conviction, and release of the seafarers of the vessel as well as the imposition of nominal fines can be discussed from three perspectives.
He said: “Perspective one is that of exercise of Sovereign power. Nigeria saw the case as an opportunity to assert its Sovereign authority over its territorial waters as defined under the Nigerian Territorial Waters Act, and as delimited under the law of the seas. For a long time, the impression has been created that the Nigerian territorial waters space is ungoverned, such that any foreign vessel could come into the territorial waters illegally without consequences. So, Nigeria used the opportunity to send a strong message to foreign vessels that the Nigerian Navy is watching over Nigerian waters within the remit of her jurisdictional powers. It was also a litmus test of the effectiveness of the agreement on the collaboration of the national Navies of the member States of the regional maritime organisation, under MOWCA’s Yaounde Agreement of 2013 on the repression of piracy, armed robbery against ships, and illicit Maritime activities in West and Central Africa.
“There is also the Perspective Two, which is the fall out of the political atmosphere of the time. Recall that theft of Nigeria’s crude was heavily spotlighted during the months heralding campaigns leading up to the Presidential election in the just concluded general elections. So Heroic Idun was unfortunate to be in Nigerian waters at the time. The Nigerian authorities created the impression at the time that it had caught one of those big vessels stealing Nigeria’s crude. So, the arrest sort of calmed the anxiety of Nigerians that the stealing of Nigeria’s crude was at best being treated with levity by the Nigerian State. But from the outcome of the case, it is doubtful if the charge was justified in the first instance, considering that offences committed against the provisions of the SPOMO Act attract heavy penalties for the offender.
“Perspective three is what some of us have campaigned against. Using seafarers as scapegoats whenever a vessel has issues with government authorities in the course of her operations. This is what is called undue criminalization, or unfair treatment of seafarers. Out of 26 seafarers on board Heroic Idun, 15 were arrested and charged to court. Who suffers for the alleged offence? Of course, it is the seafarers who are mere servants of the owners of the vessel. In my considered view, the effectiveness of the SPOMO Act was not put to test. From the facts in the public space, the case qualified for one which should have been resolved without involving the court at all”, he said.
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