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NIWA signs MOU with Lagos State to end Waterways dispute

The dispute between National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA) and Lagos State over the control of waterways came to an end on Monday after both parties signed an agreement of cooperation.

Officials of the National Inland Waterways Authority were led by Managing Director, Sen. Olorunnimbe Mamora, for the ratification of the treaty at the office of the Lagos state Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu.

The treaty will guarantee a better working relationship between NIWA and the Lagos State Waterways Authority (LASWA).

The row over the control of waterways surrounding Lagos started more than 10 years ago between NIWA and LASWA, with both parties locking horns in a protracted legal battle. With the new agreement, both parties will now have a joint responsibility to ensure safety, harmonise tariffs and monitor regulations on the waterways.

After signing the agreement, Sen. Mamora said the agreement was signed in good faith and in the best interest of the people. Governor Sanwo-Olu said the development implied the unlocking of investment in water transportation, which is one of the cardinal projects of his administration.

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NIWA deploys swamp devils to break blockage of navigational routes in Lagos

The National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA) has deployed three swamp devils to break and unlock the blockage of navigational routes in Lagos state.

Form Epe to Badagry and Ikorodu, water weeds have affected transportation, and has brought untold hardship to both commuters and boat operators.

At Ikorodu jetty, where NIWA officials have been stationed to stem the weed tide and growth, boat operators applauded the round the clock presence of the swamp devils and called for an effective solution to the seasonal presence of water hyacinth in the state.

Ganiyu Balogun, president Association of Tourist Boat Operators and Water Transporters of Nigeria (ATBOWATION), lauded NIWA.

He said without the presence of swamp devil machines, water transportation would have been grounded in the state.

He promised that his association will partner with the agency to ensure free flow of movement throughout the festive period and beyond.

Mauzu Sambo, Lagos area manager of NIWA, disclosed that NIWA will soon deploy its massive and giant water weeds harvester in addition to the swamp devils as part of the strategy to stem the menace of water hyacinth on Lagos waterways.

“NIWA as eye of the federal government will find a solution to this development,” he said.

“We are not satisfied with any palliative arrangement and that is why our team is stationed here until we eradicate and provide solution to end users, particularly at a period like this when Lagosians and their families would want to visit friends and others heading to beaches.

Source: The Cable

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NIWA Urges LASG to Obey Court Order on Dredging

The National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA) has urged the Lagos State Government to obey a Federal High Court judgement restricting it from regulating commercial activities of dredgers in the state.

The Lagos Area Manager of NIWA, Mr Mu’azu Sambo made the plea in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Tuesday in Lagos.

Sambo was reacting to some guidelines issued by the Dredging and Monitoring Unit of the Lagos State Ministry of Waterfront Infrastructure Development (MWFID).

The ministry said that the guidelines regulating dredging activities in the state had been in existence for long but the operators had not adhered to it.

It said that the state government intended to regulate dredging activities to protect the interest of the state.

The area manager said the court ruled in 2014 that the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) and NIWA were the proper and lawful agencies allowed to regulate the dredgers.

He explained that the court, therefore, restrained the Lagos State Waterways Authority (LASWA) and the Lagos State Ministry of Waterfront Infrastructural Development from collecting and imposing charges on dredgers.

“Mineral, mining, oil and water resources are controlled by the Federal Government and are in the exclusive legislative list of the Constitution.

“There is due diligence in the process of obtaining permits or licences from NIWA, NIMASA and the Federal Ministry of Mines and Steel Development,” the NIWA chief said.

Sambo said that both the state and local governments received monthly allocations from the Federation Account, into which all revenues including sand dredging revenues were paid.

“The state governments should therefore be satisfied with their allocations, ” he said.

The area manager said that NIWA was ever ready to work in collaboration with the state government to ensure a peaceful and safe working environment for dredgers.

He said that NIWA would not allow the state to flout extant laws and judicial pronouncement.

Sambo decried both the activities of illegal dredgers and the multiple levies being imposed on the dredgers by the state government.

“I am not happy with illegal activities and multiple levies imposed on dredgers in the state because NIWA is in charge of regulating all commercial activities on the waterways.

“The authority’s (NIWA) priority is to ensure that operators work in accordance with the rules and regulations and to also ensure smooth running of commercial activities on the waterways.

The area manager said that NIWA would continue to be in the fore front in addressing and regulating all commercial activities on nation’s waterways in line with the constitution.