By Eniola Idris
Former Executive Director, Maritime Safety and Shipping Development, Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Dr. Ishaku Mabushi Shekarau has flayed the poor implementation of the provisions of the Cabotage Act.
He also decried the long delay in the disbursement of the Cabotage Vessel Finance Fund (CVFF) in spite of repeated promises by the authorities to do so over the years.
Shekarau, in a paper titled “Cabotage Vessel Finance Fund: An Un-Utilized but Veritable Tool to Spring Maritime Economic Growth”, expressed dismay that the maritime industry appears to be lagging behind in what he called “this season of buoyancy” owing to several reasons.
He listed the non-attainment of 24 hours cargo clearance target at the nation’s seaports; vehicular congestion at most of the ports; non-competitive port charges in relation to our sub-region and the non-implementation of the CVFF as some of the ills plaguing the maritime sector of the economy.
Shekarau, who is a former NIMASA executive director, called on the Federal Government to ensure that it addresses the disbursement of the CVFF before the end of the present administration.
He argued that besides the advantage of using the funds to purchase vessels or construct shipyards, it will directly or indirectly create employment opportunities and training opportunities for teeming Nigerians youths.
He wondered why the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) can sponsor agro dealers with money not contributed by them and yet maritime operators are denied their statutory right to borrow from funds contributed by them.
According to him, to what alternate purposes are the funds being applied and what is the relevance of this application to our national maritime development objectives?
He called on President Mohammadu Buhari, Minister of Transportation, Right Hon. Rotimi Amaechi and the management of NIMASA to recognize the CVFF as a specialized tool, which should be applied only to its specific purpose.
