Court Returns N6.8bn To NIMASA

The Court of Appeal sitting
in Lagos last Friday gave a  landmark Judgment which affirmed the power of the Nigerian Maritime  Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) to detain vessels in  accordance with the provisions of the Merchant Shipping Act 2007.
In a unanimous Judgment on the appeal filed by NIMASA, the Appeal Court reversed the earlier judgment of the Justice Okon Abang of the Federal High  Court which awarded N6.8b against NIMASA in favour of Hensmor Nigeria  Limited.
In the lead judgment, read by Hon. Justice Chinwe Iyizoba,  supported by Justices Sidi Bage and Rita Pemu the court agreed with the arguments of the counsels to NIMASA, Mr. Louis Mbanefo,  Chief Adegboyega Awomolo, and Dr Fabian Ajogwu, all Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SAN) and allowed the appeal on the ground that there was no credible  evidence upon which judgment was entered in favour of Hensmor Nigeria  Limited by the lower court. The Respondent was represented by Mr. Kola Awodein, SAN.
The Appeal Court also held that MT Agbomien, the vessel that was the  subject matter of the suit, was unseaworthy, going by the provisions of the  Merchant Shipping Act 2007, and was therefore justifiably detained.
On the claim of$7,000 per day by the defendant as cost of hire of the vessel,  the court held that the claim was unsubstantiated. The documents of the  charter which ought to have been pleaded and tendered to prove the item of  loss was not done.
The Appeal Court also held that the Hensmor’s basis of arriving at $25  million as the estimated value of the vesse!,-MT Agbomien was not even  placed before the lower court to enable it determine if that was a fair and  credible estimate before making the award.
The Appellate Court also noted that the respondent failed to plead full  particulars of the various heads of damages claimed and also failed to  strictly prove them, and accordingly held that the awards by the lower court
could not stand.
In affirming the regulatory power of NIMASA to detain vessels in accordance with the Merchant Shipping Act 2007, the Appeal Court ruling  has re-echoed the international nature of shipping and hence the need for  uniform compliance in global maritime safety practices as adopted and  implemented in Nigeria by NIMASA.
It will be recalled that Hensmor Nigeria Limited had approached the Federal  High Court alleging that its vessel, MT Agbomien was illegally detained by  NIMASA, arguing that although Hensmor’s certificate of seaworthiness had  expired, the vessel was nonetheless seaworthy. It then claimed that the  detention by NIMASA was unlawful.
In its statement of defence, NIMASA stated that its Harbour Master called to  inform the Agency that MT Agbomien was not seaworthy, and that as an  agency responsible by statute for the safety of shipping and navigation, the  vessel in question was inspected and it was discovered, among other things,  that the sea worthiness certificate of the ship had expired since 2005.

L-R: Commissioner of Police, Mr Okeke Godfrey, Commandant, Police Staff College, Jos, Mr Bala Hassan and Coordinator of Courses, Police Staff College, Jos, Mr Jibrin Yakubu, during the graduation of Police Advanced Detective Course 60/2014 in Jos, yesterday.

Nkpemenyie Mcdominic