Apparently in a reaction to barrage of criticism over its handling and responses to cases of piracy and sea robbery within the nation’s coast, the Nigeria Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) has presented the Draft Piracy and Other Unlawful Acts At Sea Bill to industry stakeholders in Lagos.
Apparently in a reaction to barrage of criticism over its handling and responses to cases of piracy and sea robbery within the nation’s coast, the Nigeria Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) has presented the Draft Piracy and Other Unlawful Acts At Sea Bill to industry stakeholders in Lagos.
The draft bill which reportedly draws its strength from the various treaties of the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) that have already been ratified by Nigeria is expected to provide a regulatory framework for defining piracy and criminal offences at sea, prosecuting and punishing convicted suspects.
In his speech shortly before the presentation of the bill, the director-general of NIMASA, Mr. Ziakede Akpobolokemi, underscored the economic impact of piracy, saying that about $3 billion was being lost annually to piracy and sea robbery globally from which activities on Nigerian waters were major contributors.
The NIMASA boss, who was represented by the executive director, Cabotage Service and Labour, Mr. Ibrahim Zilani said, “In a bid to develop a robust legal framework for fighting these incidences on sea, an international conference on piracy was organised by NIMASA in collaboration with the Nigeria Navy. One of the resolutions at that conference was to
strengthen existing legal framework. “This bill is drawn not only from conventions of the IMO that Nigeria is a signatory to, but also provisions of other protocols yet to be conceded to, but important for curbing unlawful acts at sea.”
Also speaking at the event, the minister of transport, Senator Idris Umar, stated that insurance costs for importing goods into the country had greatly increased owing to Nigeria’s classification as a high risk area. He however added that he was optimistic that the recent level of attention accorded the menace by the international community and laws like the one being presented would surely drive the menace down tremendously.
The legal consultant to NIMASA on the bill , Mike Igbokwe (SAN),while presenting the bill, explained there were no laws for successful prosecution of piracy incidences in the country at the moment.
“The IMO since 1988 has been coming out with treaties to suppress unlawful acts at sea. By virtue of Nigeria’s membership, the country ratified some of the treaties but not all have been domesticated. If the conventions are not domesticated, they cannot be enforced, so suspects cannot be prosecuted successfully because no local legislations on the crime,” Igbokwe
said.”
Chairman of the bill presentation forum, Hon. Justice Emmanuel Sanyaolu, while quoting some media reports, hinted that trawler operators had been forced to abandone their businesses as a result of the criminal activities and attacks by some armed robbers on sea, which had led to
monumental increase on cost of fish and sea foods in the country at one time or
the other.
“These ugly incidences have been said to have put some 250 jobs on the line. The robbers use sophisticated weapons and rob fishing men values worth millions of naira in a single attack. The major constraint in fighting this menace is that there is no legislation on the matter. The closest law on it is the British Offences At Sea 1956. NIMASA has taken the bull by the horns by providing a draft bill on this important matter,” he said.
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