Safe waterways: Boat operator applauds Marine Police
News & Trends •
government should pay attention to water transportation as they take road and air transportation seriously1 by idris olukoya1 balogun told the news agency of nigeria nan in lagos on saturday that marine policemen have devoted adequate hours policing lagos waters towards ensuring the safety of both operators and users1 boat operators have not lodged any complaint about stolen boats in the last few months1 there is no record of sea pirates attack in lagos in the last one year he said1 balogun recalled that about 10 years ago more than seven boats worth millions of naira were stolen by pirates1 up till date those boats are yet to be recovered1 since that time up till now i have not experience stolen boat the marine police are on top of their duty by patrolling the waterways regularly he said1 he however called for the provision of the needed facilities for marine police officers to enable them to continue to discharge their duties on waterways effectively1 balogun said that water transportation business was a serious business that required seriousness and attention from both the government and operators1 mr ganiyu balogun managing director tarzan boat company ltd has applauded the nigerian marine police for ensuring the safety of lives and properties on the waterways1 for a state like lagos the government needs to pay attention to water transportation as an alternative means of transport to the road1 this development will help to decongest traffic on the road1 according to him water transportation is capital intensive to maintain boats1 he equates investment in marine transport to that of air transport business saying boat engines and other elements that go with it were very expensive to acquire1 it is almost like operating aircraft business with functional airports just as water transportation requires functional jetties and terminals across the state1 there is a need for government to provide soft loans as incentives to operators to ease their funding challenges1 because it is capital intensive to run a successful boat transport business1 there is the need for public private partnership ppp he said1 balogun however commended national inland waterways authority niwa and lagos state water authority laswa for ensuring smooth operations on the waterways1