Passengers Get 6,000 Life Jackets In NIWA’s Safety Drive

The managing director of the National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA), Bola Oyebamiji, announced that the Authority had distributed over 6,000 life jackets to passengers across the nation’s inland waterways.

Speaking yesterday after meeting with the Authority’s board members, the NIWA MD said the authority under his command has increased the number of goods and passengers on the inland waterways.

LEADERSHIP reports that the members of the Authority’s board are Hon. Musa Sarkin Adar, Bola Oyebamiji, and Hussaini Shettima

Jeminiwa Adewale Charles, Dr. Ndidi Jenifer Ozegbe and Prof. Sadiq Z. Abubakar.

Others are Surv. Kunle Olugbemiro, Capt. Tajudeen Alao, Dele Kelvin Oye, Capt. Jerome Andwunwe and Hon. Hoplyn Euore.

According to him, the authority has also enhanced safety on the Inland waterways by ensuring that the Water Transportation Code was processed and gazetted.

He also mentioned the deployment of more Water Marshals to man loading and off-loading points across the country, sensitising the general public to safety.

“We have made significant progress and achievements in recent times, which include increasing the number of goods and passengers on the inland waterways, enhancing safety on the Inland waterways by ensuring that the Water Transportation Code was processed and gazetted, and deployment of more Water Marshals to man loading and off-loading points across the country.

“Others are, sensitizing the general public to safety by conducting sensitisation programmes in more than 12 states, while close to 6,000 units of standard lifejackets were distributed in addition to our annual safety campaigns across jetties and watersides through our operational bases and by enhancing collaboration with the state governments such as Bayelsa, Niger, Kwara, Sokoto, and Lagos.”

Responding, the NIWA board chairman, Hon. Musa Adar, said he would work with stakeholders to create and bequeath a better organisation.

He assured the MD that he would be fully committed and willing to deploy his time and resources to attain the Authority’s vision of establishing and sustaining a first-class organisation managed professionally and responsibly.

“As the chairman of the Board of this great Organisation, I will do my best to discharge my duties, and undertake to respect the judgment and advice of my fellow members and the Management. I will join hands with well-meaning Stakeholders to create and bequeath an organisation that is better than the one we have today”.

“I want to assure you that I will be fully committed and willing to deploy my time and resources towards the attainment of the Authority’s vision to establish and sustain a first-class Organisation managed professionally and responsibly; one that is flexible and adaptable to the needs of Nigerians and recognised and respected locally and internationally.”