Ex-militants trained as divers are jobless, says expert
A diving inspector-elect, Mr. Julius Ugwuala, has said that most of the former militants trained as divers under the Federal Government amnesty programme have become jobless.
According to him, the situation is a security risk that needs to be addressed so that the ex-militants do not go back to their bad ways due to idleness.
“The Federal Government under the amnesty initiative trained former militants and some of them chose diving as a profession; they are back in the country and are qualified to work.
“Unfortunately, since they returned, they have not had the opportunity to work with the oil and gas sector.
“The security risk with them being jobless is that the training they had in diving will further enhance their former business if they decide to go back to it,” he said.
He suggested that the code of practice for diving should be implemented through inauguration of a diving advisory board, stating that the absence of the code of practice has set the ex-militants backwards.
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He called for the proper regulation of diving in Nigeria, adding that “divers are not insured because we do not have regulations that are working; this is part of the issues that the code of practice will address.
“For us to have an effective code of practice, we are looking at the most stringent one, to meet expectations or exceed international standards,” he said.
Ugwuala suggested that to reduce accidents, no diving contractor should mobilise to site without clearance from the advisory board, adding that inspectors should be deployed to check equipment to ascertain their suitability for operations.
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