Seafarers Day: Adeyanju charges NIMASA to address lack of sea-time training for seafarers

As Nigeria joined the rest of the world to mark 2025 Seafarers Day today, June 25, the former President General of Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria (MWUN), Comrade Adewale Adeyanju, has advised the Nigerian Maritime and Safety Agency (NIMASA) to address this lack of sea-time training challenge being faced by Nigerian seafarers after leaving training institutions.

Adeyanju said it is worrisome that training institutions chunk out cadets yearly with no vessels to engage them in sea-time training.

Comrade Adewale Adeyanju gave the advice while congratulating the newly elected President of the Dockworkers Branch, Comrade Bolaji Agboola.

Adeyanju, who urged Comrade Bolaji Agboola to embrace all his executives and carry all dockworkers in the nation, charged NIMASA to do the needful towards making sure that Nigerian seafarers do not lag behind in terms of training that would put them at par with their counterparts across the globe.

On the election that produced Bolaji Agboola, Adeyanju emphasised that there were no factions as there is always a room for all to disagree to agree in one accord and in the good spirit of the Union with the slogan of “Forward Ever, Backward Never”.

He particularly praised the outgone President, Comrade Tajudeen Ibrahim Ohize, his successor for his commitment to the branch during his tenure, as he admonished the new leadership to do better, hence, they were voted to surpass all their predecessors.

The current Deputy President of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and Chairman Global, International Transport Workers Federation (ITF)  also commended the President-General of the Union, Comrade Francis Bunu Abi, for handling the pre-election period till the election day proper cautiously.

“Comrade Francis Bunu Abi has indeed made me proud and by extension the entire Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria in carrying out this onerous assignments of the Unions elections so far,” said he.

The former PG of the Union reiterated that the newly elected executives must borrow a leaf from the former President of the Dockworkers branch, Comrade Ohize, and the past Presidents of the branch who aimed to do more exploits towards raising the standard of the branch in this first tenure of four years.