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… Rallies maritime workers to block arms movement
From Aniekan Aniekan, Calabar
The National Centre for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons, NCCSALW, South-South Zone, has called for stronger partnership with maritime workers saying its only weapon against the movement of illicit firearms on Nigeria’s waterways is intelligence from the public.
The Zonal Director, Dr. Alex Ebimiebo, made this known during a one-day sensitisation meeting with members of the Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria at the NCCSALW Zonal Office in Calabar.
Ebimiebo said the Centre operates differently from conventional security agencies, and that makes maritime workers critical to national security.
“Because these crimes are committed by faceless people, the only way we can go after such people is through information and intelligence brought to us by kind-hearted people like the maritime workers and other stakeholders in society,” he said.
He explained that the engagement was organised to deepen awareness of the Centre’s mandate and to galvanise boat operators to support the fight against the proliferation of small arms and light weapons, especially along waterways linking Nigeria with neighbouring Cameroon.
The zonal director warned that illicit firearms are often concealed among legitimate goods and passengers, and urged operators to be vigilant.
“You are the ones who see what is happening in our waterways. While we are sensitising you, we urge you to be very vigilant to help yourselves and thoroughly check what your passengers are carrying,” Ebimiebo said.
He called on maritime operators to encourage passengers to disclose the contents of their luggage and to ensure goods are properly inspected and scanned where possible.
He also warned that failure to do so could leave workers vulnerable.
Ebimiebo stressed that addressing violent crime in Nigeria must go beyond responding to attacks to blocking the sources and routes of illegal weapons.
He described tackling illicit small arms as central to improving security, adding that security agencies alone cannot monitor Nigeria’s vast waterways without the cooperation of those who operate there daily.
Speaking on behalf of participants, Offiong Ita, a boat operator at Marina Beach in Calabar, pledged the commitment of maritime workers to collaborate with the Centre.
He assured that boat operators would remain vigilant and support efforts to identify and report suspicious activities along the waterways.
