The Ijaw Diaspora Council (IDC) has urged the federal and state governments to join forces in curbing piracy in the Niger Delta region.

The group traced the menace to legal and jurisdictional lapses, underfunded law enforcement, inadequate security, permissive political environments, and the culmination of years of inattention, desperation, and lawlessness.

On Tuesday, Mondy Gold, IDC president, made the call in a statement at an International Conference on Law of the Sea and Maritime convened by the group. According to the statement, tackling piracy will ensure that governance processes and the welfare of the people in the resource-rich region can be improved.

The IDC stated that the conference was held on June 10, 2023, and had in attendance Keynote and guest speakers, including Paul Adalikwu, secretary general of the Maritime Organisation of West and Central Africa, and Bashir Jamoh, director-general and CEO of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA).

IDC said the conference also urged “all stakeholders to shun the lure of dollars from buyers of stolen crude oil to Nigerian youths, especially in the Niger Delta region.

Also, to drastically minimise “corrupt foreign government officials and financial institutions receiving and recycling of illicit funds; ransom payments for crews and sailors in dollars; and exotic lifestyles from the proceeds, all of which serve to whet the appetite for these criminal activities and further attract the youths.”

In its communique, the conference called on governments in Niger Delta to support Operation Obangame, “the largest multinational maritime exercise in West and Central Africa, which includes numerous sea and ashore training events throughout the Gulf of Guinea and the Southern Atlantic oceans.”

The conference agreed to collaborate and improve synergy among stakeholders, sustain the gains made by the Maritime Organization of West and Central Africa (MOWCA), and work with member states and the International Maritime Organization (IMO) to establish an Integrated Coast Guard Function Network.

The network will supply regional mechanisms for combating piracy and armed robbery against ships and for enhancing maritime security in general for the area from Mauritania to Angola.

The communique urges Niger Delta states to apply caution, like in the joint development zones of Nigeria and Sao Tome and Principe, and further apply restraint in the maritime delimitation process because the rights conferred on a coastal state to explore and exploit its natural resources stem from the principle of ‘Permanent Sovereignty over Natural Resources (PSNR).

PSNR is a legal, governmental control and management authority over natural resources, particularly as an aspect of exercising the right of self-determination.

(NAN)