★Commends Oyetola, NIWA over Water Marshalls, Rescue Boat Deployment
★ Arogundade Too Hails NIWA’s New Lease of Life, Seeks Revolving Loans for Boaters
The National President of the Association of Tourist Boat Operators and Water Transporters of Nigeria (ATBOWATON), Chief Dr. Ganiyu “Tarzan” Balogun, has commended the Federal Government for creating a conducive environment for water transportation to thrive in Nigeria.
Dr. Balogun, who is also the Chief Executive Officer of Tarzan Marine Enterprises Ltd., gave the commendation in an interview with the StatePost over the weekend.
He particularly applauded the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola, for what he described as the ministry’s sustained initiatives aimed at restoring water transportation to its rightful place in the nation’s transportation system.
According to him, the engagement of River Marshalls to patrol and monitor the nation’s waterways is a significant step towards ensuring compliance with established regulations and promoting responsible conduct among water transporters and tourist boat operators.
Dr. Balogun also expressed satisfaction with the decision by the ministry and its agency, the National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA), to remunerate the River Marshalls, saying the development would motivate them to discharge their responsibilities more effectively.
He stressed that safety must remain the priority in the development of Nigeria’s inland waterways.
“Safety on the Nigerian waterways is of paramount importance, and it is gladdening to observe that the Federal Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy and NIWA are not relenting in their efforts to guarantee maximum safety on the nation’s waterways,” he said.
The ATBOWATON president also expressed appreciation to the minister for the recent deployment of a Rescue Boat to Ogun State, describing the development as a major boost to emergency response and safety operations on the state’s waterways.
He noted that the Rescue Boat deployment was particularly timely, coming shortly after the state received an Ambulance Boat to support safe and efficient water transportation operations.
Dr. Balogun said the availability of both emergency-response facilities would strengthen confidence among operators and passengers while enhancing the capacity of relevant authorities to respond promptly to incidents on the waterways.
He disclosed that reports reaching the ATBOWATON National Secretariat from different parts of the country were encouraging, expressing optimism that the water transportation sector was now poised for significant growth.
“The reports reaching our National Secretariat are all good and convincing that water transportation in Nigeria is ripe for the next level,” he said.
In his own reaction on NIWA’s sustained efforts to improve water transportation in the country, the National General Secretary of ATBOWATON, Kazeem Arogundade, said the sector’s future was becoming increasingly assured, given the contributions and interventions of the present administration.
Arogundade noted that, unlike in the past when water transportation was often treated as a secondary subsector of transportation, it is now receiving greater attention from the government.
He described the prompt payment of River Marshalls, as well as the provision of two motor boats — an Ambulance Boat and a Rescue Boat, as timely interventions capable of preventing avoidable tragedies on the nation’s waterways.
According to him, with these provisions, coupled with the earlier distribution of life jackets, accidents and loss of lives on the waterways would be reduced to the barest minimum.
The ATBOWATON scribe, however, urged the government to go a step further by supporting boat operators to replace ageing and worn-out boats or expand their fleets.
He suggested the introduction of a revolving loan scheme or other appropriate financing arrangements that would enable boaters to acquire safer and more modern boats.
Arogundade, who remarked that the water transportation sector had “never had it so good,” appealed to the government to sustain the momentum.
He expressed optimism that the continued creation of an enabling environment for water transport operators would accelerate the development of the sector and make it a more viable and dependable component of Nigeria’s transportation system.
