The Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, has registered his displeasure with continuous patronage of illegal harbours known as secure anchorage areas.

According to the minister, an individual has sought to exploit the industry by collecting $1,200 daily for secure anchorage in the country from ship owners.

He said this while delivering a virtual keynote address at the 2020 World Maritime Day Celebration which held at Eko Hotel and Suites in Lagos.

The minister said the issue was quite unsettling.

He said, “There is a crisis in the maritime sector. The crisis is on the issue of security.

“Today, we have a single individual partnering with the military that is collecting $1,200 to the detriment of shipping companies.

“That one individual is still managing the business with support of other institutions.”

He accused stakeholders of doing nothing to the individual, stressing that no one other than the minister had the right to step up a secure anchorage area

Credit: Punch