..Says We Will Not Dignify LASWA By Descending To Pedestrian Level

The National Inland Waterways Authority(NIWA) said it has sent  a high-powered delegation to commiserate with the Oba of Ilashe over the boat mishap on Sunday,August 20,2017 that claimed lives.

An online statement issued by NIWA stated that the management and staff of the agency extend their condolences to the Onilase of Ilashe, Lagos and the good people of Ilashe Community, particularly the families of those who lost their loved ones in the boat mishap of Sunday, 20th August, 2017.

The statement noted that incident occurred at about 11.30am and  that the authority had since despatched a high-powered delegation to commiserate with the Oba of Ilashe and the families of the affected persons in addition to the engagement of its Search-and-Rescue(SAR) team.

NIWA  prayed that the Almighty God shall give them all the strength to bear the painful losses.

The statement stated that preliminary investigations by the NIWA Lagos Area Office revealed that 16 persons including the young and old boarded the private boat from the Ilashe Community Jetty to cross to the other side of the Badagry Creek on their way to Church, adding that as at the time of compiling this statement there were five survivors, nine fatalities and one person unaccounted for.

“The authority would like to seize this opportunity to renew its calls on all water users on the critical importance of wearing life jackets on board all boats no matter how short the distance may be and whether or not a person can swim. Life jackets are mandatory on board at all times,” the statement said.

Meanwhile, the authority  said it has noted the blatant lies and propaganda sponsored and circulated today in some media outlets by the Lagos State Waterways Authority(LASWA)in the wake of this incident, saying that, “We shall not dignify them by descending to the pedestrian level that they did, regrettably seizing a moment of sorrow and pain to do so.”

It continued, “At times like this, responsible and accountable government agencies should be concerned about providing succor to victims and families, assisting in rescue operations and examining the cause(s) of the mishap with a view to curtailing possible future occurrences.”

To put the records straight, NIWA called on the public to note the facts stated above regarding this incident and to ignore the lies and propaganda of LASWA.

According to NIWA, “We shall equally not comment on the recent Court of Appeal judgment they alluded to, as the matter is now effectively before the Supreme Court of Nigeria.”