About 19 passengers have been attacked and some raped by sea pirates along the Bakassi waterways in Cross River State.
The traumautised travellers have appealed to the Federal Government to increase gun patrols along the Bakassi waterways as the pirates have added a new dimension of raping female passengers to their normal robbery activities.
They said it was not the first time that sea pirates would attack boats laden with traders along the waterways.
Narrating his experience on the incident to newsmen, which happened Friday, May 1,2015, the driver of the boat, Mr. Effiom Bassey, said.
“On that Friday around 9am, I was leaving for Cameroon but not quite long after we had left Ikang, headquarters of Bakassi Local Government Area, we saw one flying boat coming. I initially thought it was a passenger boat, but when I saw the flag I knew that they were sea pirates.
“They blocked me and pointed guns at me asking me to fall into the water, which I did, and they took over my flying boat. After ransacking all the passengers and raping some few female travellers, they went away with all the goods in the boat.
“They dislodged the 19 passengers I carried. They went away with my big boat. The goods they took away along with the boat are estimated to be around N40m.”
A 24-year-old fish trader, Enoh Ubon, who was among the victims, said passengers have lost so many valuables to sea pirates in the last few months.
Ubon confirmed that two female traders were raped during the encounter by the robbers, adding that she was, however, spared because she was on her monthly menstrual cycle.
“It is not the first time that we have been attacked. We have complained to authorities concerned but we have not seen improved security presence. The robbers do not only steal, they have added rape to it. This is unfortunate,” she said angrily.
Following the attack, boat operators have intensified their call on the Federal Government to increase gun patrol boats on the waterways.
Chairman of the Ikang Boat Owners Association, Mr. Uduak Akpabio, said the Bakassi Jetty was one of the most busy on the route to Cameroon, Gabon and Equatorial Guinea.
He confirmed that the sea pirates had consistently raped female passengers in addition to robbing them.
