By GODWIN OTANG, Calabar

A speed boat sailing 14 passengers, including a naval officer, from Calabar to Oron, Akwa Ibom State, has been hijacked by suspected sea pirates.

Sources had confirmed that earlier in December 2021, a boat with five passengers was hijacked and the passengers were released after each had paid a ransom of N200,000 naira.

An official, who pleaded anonymity, lamented the poor protection and cover from the security agencies on the Calabar-Oron maritime route even though he claimed that they spent, at least, N155,000 monthly on the security agencies.

In recent times, increasing numbers of commuters prefer to travel by water to Uyo in Akwa Ibom State under 30 minutes as against the five hours they will spend on the road due to the terrible state of the Calabar-Itu federal highway, which links other nearby states.

The source volunteered: “Piracy on the route has been rampant. For instance, in December 2021, a boat with five passengers was hijacked. A few of the passengers individually paid ransoms of N200,000 before they were released.

“Before then, in 2019, the hijack was on a daily basis which was the reason we suspended business and protested for about two months.

“The protests took us to the police and navy headquarters in the state. It was as a result of the protests and stoppage of Boat operations that the two authorities decided to station their gunboats in the Calabar waters while the naval police station theirs on the Akwa Ibom end of the waters to deter militants and pirates,” the source disclosed.

The source further said to support the security agencies, they collectively paid them N5,000 daily.

According to him, the attraction of the sea pirates “seems to be the speed boat engines which have a second-hand price of over N5 million.

“When they carry out a hijack like this we would normally contribute, say N250,000 to secure the release of the boat and its engine but they will never release our boat and engine. They will collect our money, collect the ransom and still will not give us back our boats.

“We appeal that the attention of the security be focused towards this direction even though we are not scared,” he said.

Reacting, to the development, the Cross River State police PRO, Irene Ugbo, said the Commanding Officer Marine was yet to officially brief the Command about the incident. (Nigerian Tribune)

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