A 5-year-old girl (name withheld) was confirmed to have been killed by gunmen that attacked a speedboat and shot dead the girl in Bayelsa State.
It was gathered that the sea robbers opened fire on the speedboat while the driver was trying to meander away after sighting them as they approached Koluama.
As gathered, the mother, identified as Lovina Isegu, and sibling, Comfort of the deceased minor were on board with six other passengers when the incident occurred.
According to the report, the mother of the deceased, and others were traveling from the Swali Market waterfront in Yenagoa, the state capital, to Koluama 1 and 2 in the Southern Ijaw Local Government Area of the state when the incident happened on Wednesday.
The State Chairman, Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria (MWUN), Ogoniba Ipigansi, who confirmed the attack added that the pirates also shot the boat driver, identified as Okilo Orubiko.
According to the chairman, Orubiko sustained severe gunshot wounds but managed to navigate the boat and the passengers to Koluama 1 where he was taken for medical treatment.
Ipigansi said, “We are calling on the state and Federal Government to pay serious attention to the security of lives and property of drivers and passengers traveling on the waterways.
“We particularly urge the governments to immediately do something to address the porous security in those areas as lives and property are no longer safe on the waterways.”
