A total of 187 merchant ships, barges and speed boats arrested for infractions on the nation’s territorial waters are currently rotting away at jetties belonging to the Nigerian Navy (NN).
The vessels worth several billions of naira were arrested by the navy for alleged involvement in the theft of petroleum products between January and December, 2020.
In a statement, the NN’s Director of Information, Commodore Sulaiman Dahun, gave the breakdown of the vessels as 87 ships, 43 barges, 57 speed boats, 393 destroyed wooden boats, 13 trucks, including 16 vehicles.
Dahum disclosed that 13 of the vessels had been forfeited to the federal government and the rest handed over to prosecuting agencies.
He said, “The prosecution of maritime offences received a boost in 2020 following the enactment and application of the law on piracy and suppression of violent crimes at sea. Indeed, the successful prosecution and conviction of arrested persons under the law is expected to serve as a huge deterrent.”
He further revealed that within the same period, 140 tankers/trucks and 404 vehicles involved in smuggling activities were also impounded.
Although some of the merchant ships are subjects of ligation at different courts, naval sources said they were pulling down the jetties as a result of water currents.
Source: allafrica.com
