By Izuchukwu Ozoemena

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) and similar regulatory bodies have been asked to change their investigative tactics, speed up and desist from unduly dragging investigations into cases of drugs found on vessels. Delay, it is argued, places at a huge disadvantage ship crew, shipowners and importers aboard vessels suspected to carry drugs and other illicit substances especially when, at the end of the day, they are found not culpable for such transactions.

Interventions by shipping experts unanimously pointed this way in Lagos,Thursday, when shipping and security stakeholders converged at the Maritime Security Providers Association of Nigeria (MASPAN) and Alumni of Maritime Academy of Nigeria Oron (AMANO) summit to discuss “Drugs & Human Smuggling/Trafficking: The Evolving Maritime Security Threats To Ships Seafarers”.

They observed that shipowners lose millions of dollars to vessel delays, legal costs, crew salaries and inconveniences including additional costs on their families during delayed investigation of drug trafficking suspicions.

Several shipowners, the experts observed, have gone into depression and bankruptcy as they battle loss of business opportunities and other inconveniences.

Speaking at the event, Capt Suresh Prabhakar, Director, Operations, Pacific Basin Shipping Ltd, Hong Kong, deplored a situation where the regulatory agencies would detain ships for a long period of time, spend months on investigation only to discover later that the crew, shipowners and even importers do not have a hand in the transactions.

“From February 2021 to July 2024,” he pointed out, “there were 4 bulk carriers laden with sugar from Santos, Brazil, to Lagos where cocaine of quantities varying from 18 to 43 kilograms were discovered onboard each ship by the NDLEA.”

“During the course of the investigations, each ship was delayed for between 4 to 6 months and allowed to sail after owners posted bonds ranging from $2 million to $5 million.”

“On each ship about half the crew members, which is about 10 crew per ship, were detained. The bail amount posted per crew member to allow them to reside in a hotel rather than in a detention facility was $40,000, which totals to $400,000 for 10 crew.

“On two ships, after multiple court hearings crew were released after being detained for about 20 months each. The other two ships’ crew are still under detention in Lagos whilst court hearings are ongoing. The crew have been in Lagos for 34 months and 13 months respectively.

“Such incidents cost ship owners huge amounts of money in lost revenue by way of vessel delays, legal costs, crew salaries, family upkeep and the like. Additionally, when crew members are subjected to such treatment, most responsible owners expend a lot of time and effort in trying to secure their release.”

Cases such as these, he explained, place the shipowner at a disadvantage, adversely impacting his ability to engage in such trades and maintaining business on productive routes.

Prabhakar asked regulatory agencies to be proactive always. Shipowners should be informed when it is proved that the crew aboard a ship are involved in the drug trafficking. He maintained that the shipowners would be ready and willing to hand over the suspects to the authorities, rather than detain the ship indefinitely with other innocent crew members.

“But unfortunately in some countries like here (Nigeria), the NDLEA have been detaining ships for long periods of time, crews for long periods of time and then they have sort of been put through a lot of mental and physical stress. And then many of them don’t want to come back to sea again as a career” he regretted.

In his remarks, Chairman of the occasion, the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Gboyega Oyetola, condemned the current level of security threat in the maritime sector, particularly as concerns illicit drugs and human trafficking.

He spoke through Heaky Dimowo, the Director, Marine Environment Management, Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, NIMASA.

“These activities are not merely criminal act, they erode our social fabric, destabilize communities and challenge our law enforcement at sea,” the Minister said.

“Moreover, they pose significant risk to the Maritime and Security of seafarers and vessels. Today we must confront the fact that our waters are increasingly viewed as transit route to illicit activities.”

The minister maintained that it was essential that Nigeria developed comprehensive strategies to address these evolving threats by leveraging on technical innovations, enhancing intelligence capabilities and fostering collaboration among critical stakeholders.

“Together, we can develop multifaceted responses that effectively combat these challenges” he concluded.

“On each ship about half the crew members, which is about 10 crew per ship were detained. The bail amount posted per crew member to allow them to reside in a hotel rather than in a detention facility was $40,000, which totals to $400,000 for 10 crew.

“On two ships, after multiple court hearings crew were released after being detained for about 20 months each. The other two ships’ crew are still under detention in Lagos whilst court hearings are ongoing. The crew have been in Lagos for 34 months and 13 months respectively.

“Such incidents cost ship owners huge amounts of money in lost revenue by way of vessel delays, legal costs, crew salaries, family upkeep and the like. Additionally, when crew members are subjected to such treatment, most responsible owners expend a lot of time and effort in trying to secure their release.”

He said cases such as these, adversely impact the ability of shipowners to engage in such trades and several owners and operators are forced to choose alternative trade routes.

Prabhakar appealed to relevant agencies of government, especially the NDLEA to always inform the shipowners once they are sure that the crew are involved in the drug trafficking incident. He maintained that the shipowners would be ready and willing to hand over the suspects to the authories, rather than have the ship detained with other innocent crew members detained, insisting that in  99.99% of the cases there is zero crew members involved.

“But unfortunately in some countries like here, the NDLEA have been detaining ships for long periods of time, crews for long periods of time and then they have sort of been put through a lot of mental and physical stress. And then many of them don’t want to come back to sea again as a career” he disclosed.

Speaking, the Summit Chairman, Emmanuel Maiguwa said the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime

(UNODC) sees West Africa as a transit region for narcotics mostly emanating from South America, a development that gave filip to the summit.

“With recent incidents involving merchant ships (excluding cases of drugs concealed in cargo containers) from South America to Nigeria rising to about four within the last two years, this maritime corridor proves to be providing mobility for this illicit activity.

He informed that on the issue of human trafficking, records from Africa Risk Compliance (ARC) show a significant number of incidents where stowaways have been discovered on ships calling Nigerian ports.

While Nigeria may not present specific records linking stowaways to drug smuggling operations, he continued, it is of great concern that drug traffickers could potentially collaborate with stowaway networks. This partnership could lead to a coordinated effort to use stowaways as couriers, moving drugs from West Africa to Europe.

“Both MASPAN and AMANO express strong support for the fight against all forms of trafficking and smuggling, including drugs and humans; we are mainly focused on addressing responses to these crimes as they occur within the maritime corridor.

“We aim to ensure that perpetrators of these crimes are apprehended and fully punished by the law without subjecting the innocent to unnecessary difficulties that are counterproductive to the growth of shipping” he added.