Governor Agbu Kefas of Taraba State has announced that old boats plying waterways in the state would soon be phased out.
The governor, who made the announcement on Monday while reacting to a boat accident that occured in Ibi council on Sunday, also declared that the use of life jackets would be enforced, henceforth.
DAILY POST reported that another boat mishap, which claimed several lives, was recorded in Taraba State on Sunday.
The accident occurred when the state is still mourning the boat mishap that recently took place in Karim-Lamido council, where several passengers died.
Describing Sunday’s accident as a terrible tragedy, Kefas said, “This occurrence is even more unfortunate coming on the heels of another tragic boat capsize in Karim Lamido that threw the state into mourning.”
According to him, his administration is already on top of the situation “as various investigations were underway to unravel the immediate and remote causes of the boat accidents in the state”.
The governor, who also announced that he would soon personally tour the affected areas with the aim of meeting with local stakeholders in the waterways transport sector, reiterated his earlier commitment to making water transport safe for passengers.
Affirming that aqua tourism and investment is central to his overall economic agenda, his administration, he said, would soon be enforcing safety standards among other measures.
Kefas, who made the announcement in a statement issued to journalists in the state capital by his Special Adviser Media and Digital Communications, Emmanuel Bello, said “old boats would soon be phased out, and the use of life jackets made compulsory among other life-saving measures”.
