By Fredrick Wright
Prevailing challenges trailing Nigeria’s wobbling economic status has been linked to abandonment of the nation’s rich heritage.
The Chief Host at the Sea Sunday held in Lagos, Rt Reverend Humphrey Olumakaiye, said decried the harsh conditions Nigerian and foreign seafarers undergo in the line of their duties on the sea.
Olumakaiye, noted that seafarers are faced with untold hardship day and night, and are always at the danger of pirates.
He said the seafarers are held incommunicado without communication with their loved ones, as well as faced with unfair employment and treatment, unfavourable treatment from state and non-state actors and imprisonment at foreign ports.
Olumakaiye said:
Nigeria is at doldrums because of the abandoned rich heritage, particularly the sea and all the positive activities of the seafarers who daily risk their lives to bring comfort and stability to the world.
He noted that without the seafarers, the economy of the world will be in shambles, adding that the comfort citizens of the world are experiencing today is as a result of the contributions of the seafarers to the world economy.
Chairman, Mission to Seafarers, Adebayo Sarumi expressed concerned over the nature of the seafaring profession, pointing that seamen work under extremely difficult situations.
Sarumi stated that the Lagos port is very important to the world, as no fewer than 8, 000 ships visit the port yearly, with not less 30 seafarers onboard foreign vessels that sail into the Lagos ports, hence the need to support the sailors.
“The job of the seafarers is hard. In the past the threat was just the bad weather, sickness, then came the issue of piracy, home sickness, loneliness, lack of communication with loved ones and sending money home. Some of them have been unfairly imprisoned for months without any legal representation due to some kind of contractual issues.
“Seafarers are stuck on the ship as protocol deny them repatriation, some could be stranded for weeks. They undergo psychological pressure, as they are being confined to the marine space. Over 25 percent of seafarers suffer from severe depression, 15 percent suffer suicide attack and some actually succeed in the suicide attempt,” he stressed.
He said seafarers must be celebrated and catered for spiritually, materially, emotionally and mentally to let the whole world know the hazard of their work.
Chairman of Seaport Terminal Association of Nigeria, STOAN, Dr Vicky Haastrup, said seafarers contribute to the global economy, particularly in ensuring trade facilitation between Nigeria and other countries of the world.
Haastrup who is also the Executive Vice Chairman, ENL Consortium Limited, added that while seafarers are essential workers for international trade to thrive, terminal operators have a key role to play in assisting their operations globally.
She, however, commended the Mission to Seafarers for playing a vital role in supporting seamen get the necessary treatment they desire, just as she called on all maritime stakeholders to support the operations of seafarers.
She also assured that terminal operators will continue to support seafarers in their operations.
