THE Chairman of the Nigerian Maritime Exposition (NIMAREX) 2012, Mr. Collin Egwuagu has called on the Federal Government to change the country’s sea trade policy from Cost Insurance and Freight (CIF) to Free on Board (FOB) with a view to enabling Nigerian shipowners benefit from the affreightment  of her crude oil.

Speaking to Journalists at the end of Nigeria’s biggest maritime event held in Lagos, Egwuagu stated that foreign ship owners are having a field day at the expense of their local counterparts.

The NIMAREX Chairman also disclosed that as result of the unfavourable trade policy, more than N3trillion is lost to foreigners every year adding that until the policy is changed, Nigeria will continue to lose such money.

Cabotage monitoring

Egwuagu, who also spoke on behalf of the Indigenous Shipowners Association of Nigeria (ISAN), also called for the creation of a Cabotage monitoring and Implementation committee so as to ensure that Nigerians benefit from the Law.

He noted that more than eight  years after the law was enacted, both Nigerians seafarers and ship owners are still feeding from hand to mouth.

His words “A man who does not have a canoe cannot lead people that have ships, we are advocating that a Cabotage monitoring and implementation committee be set up by Government to be driven by different arms of government but led by stakeholders that can chat a course and give a direction.

“It pains to see that every year we gather together N2trillion or N3trillion and we throw this money into the lagoon my hears bleed as a result of this because million of my brothers and sisters  cannot find their feet on the ground when we have so much that we can put to use to better their lot.”.