The National Inland Waterways Authority, NIWA, has explained the situation surrounding the boat mishap that claimed the lives of Junior Pope and four others.
Reports reveal that the incident that happened on the Anam River in Anambra State in 2024 was due to human error and not mechanical fault.
Managing Director of NIWA, Bola Oyebamiji, disclosed during a multi-modal transportation stakeholders forum in Abuja on Thursday.
According to him, some of the passengers on board before the fatality happened rejected the life jackets offered to them.
“It was not mechanical failure, not impediments in the water or weather challenges, but purely a flagrant disregard for rules and regulations guiding movement on the inland waterways,” Oyebamiji said.
Citing the incident, Oyebamiji said such actions by passengers undermine the agency’s efforts at ensuring optimum safety on waterways.
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He also called on all water users to support NIWA in raising safety awareness nationwide.
The event was also attended by the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo; the Director-General, Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau; the Director-General, Nigerian Meteorological Agency, the CEO of Air Peace Limited, Allen Onyema, among others.
Junior Pope was among the persons who drowned while returning from a shoot for a movie called ‘Another Side of Life’ which was being produced by Adanma in April 2024.
In May, the father of Junior Pope, Ozor Luke Odonwodo, passed on a year after the demise of the actor.
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The sad news was announced by Junior Pope’s wife, Jennifer Awele, in an Instagram post.
In her post, she disclosed that her father-in-law died in his 80s.
She described the father of Junior Pope as a caring and devoted father figure who lived a “good life”, prioritised his loved ones and eventually enjoyed the rewards of his hard work.
Awele also prayed for strength for the family to carry on.
