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Okuama Killings: Extend Searchlight To Lagos Waterways, Jetties, ATBOWATON Urges Security Operatives
Yinka Olajoyetan, Lagos
Following the man-hunt by security operatives for the killers of 16 military personnel in Okuama community of Ughelli South Local Government Area of Delta State, the Chairman, Board of Trustee of the Association of Tourist Boat Operators and Water Transporters of Nigeria (ATBOWATON), Mr. Frank Meke has called on security operatives to beam their searchlight on jetties and creeks along the Lagos Waterways for possible apprehension of the militants.
Speaking to newsmen on Wednesday in Lagos, Mr. Meke said that the militants could possibly run for cover in some areas along the Lagos waterways given the heavy searchlight already placed on them around the Niger Delta region.
“I am using this opportunity to call on security agencies and the National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA) to throw a security searchlight on the Lagos waterways and jetties for possible lookout of the criminal elements that killed some military personnel in Delta State.
“There is a strong likelihood that these militants will want to use the waterways to connect Lagos from the Niger Delta area due to the heavy search for them in Port Harcourt and Bayelsa.
“There are many hideous along the Lagos waterways that these criminal elements can run to. We have places in Ikorodu, Badagry, Takwa-Bay and others that they can seek refuge in and start fermenting trouble like they did in Delta State. So I am imploring security operatives to beam their searchlight on the Lagos waterways and jetties.
“I am also using the opportunity to call on NIWA to deploy it’s Police unit to all jetties in Lagos State. Anybody that ferments trouble, be he or she a member of any association, should be dealt with according to the law.
“Any operator that threatens to stop boat operations, whether private or public, should be arrested.
“On the deployment if a 60-seater boat by NIWA along the Ikorodu route, it’s a welcome development and this is the kind of interventions we expect to see on our waterways.
“I will like to correct the notion that the boat is a donation to ATBOWATON. No, it’s not a donation but an experimental initiative to see whether it will be sustainable.
“It is a partnership with the boat operators to save lives. NIWA is not running the boat. The boat is being run by ATBOWATON. The deployment of the boat is targeted at those workers who close late from work.
“Aside water transportation, the boat can also be used for recreational activities due to some features on it. It can be used for a tour of waterways in Lagos because it has an upper deck. It can be useful for event planners, tourist and others for recreational events.
“I hereby call on NIWA to arrest anybody who will want to sabotage the success of the newly deployed boat. As I speak, the Skipper that caused the last boat mishap in Ikorodu is still being hidden by unknown operators. There should be a show of force this time around from NIWA on anybody who tries to sabotage the newly deployed boat,” the Chairman BOT of ATBOWATON stated