The Chief of Army Staff, Lt.-Gen. Tukur Buratai, has commended the management of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) for combating piracy and other criminal activities on Nigerian waters.

This is contained in a statement by NIMASA’s Head of Public Relations, Hajia Lami Tumaka, issued on Thursday in Lagos.

According to the statement, Buratai gave the commendation while receiving the Acting Director-General of NIMASA, Mr Haruna Baba Jauro, who paid a working visit to the Army Headquarters in Abuja.

The statement said Buratai pledged that the army would cooperate with NIMASA to curb criminal activities, especially in the creeks where crude oil theft and piracy were perpetrated using barges and other water crafts.

It said the army chief also appealed to NIMASA and other corporate organisations to assist with the resettlement of the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs).

The statement quoted the army chief as saying that resettlement was important since calm was being restored to some of the communities.

It said that Buratai noted that “this could be done through the Corporate Social Responsibility programmes in order to have them (IDPs) properly re-integrated into the society.”

It appealed to NIMASA to engage some children of the soldiers who lost their lives in the battle against insurgency in its National Seafarers Development Programme (NSDP).

The statement explained that the army chief pointed out that this would alleviate the suffering of the affected families.

According to the statement, Jauro congratulated the Chief of Army Staff on his appointment and commended him for the successes recorded so far in the fight against insurgency in the North-East.

It called for the continuous support of the army in the fight against piracy and other criminal activities in Nigerian waters.

It added that the partnership had been very useful in reducing the menace of piracy.

The statement advised the management of NIMASA to take a holistic look at Jauro’s requests and come up with practical initiatives in providing solutions to them. (NAN)

•Photo shows Gen. Buratai.