The Senate has directed security agencies to immediately launch coordinated search and rescue operations to secure the release of 15 passengers, including candidates of the 2026 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination, UTME, kidnapped by suspected sea pirates along the Calabar-Oron waterways.
The red chamber further urged the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board, JAMB to explore measures that would reduce interstate travel for candidates sitting for examinations, including the establishment of more examination centres to enhance student safety.
The resolution follows a motion of urgent national importance sponsored by Senator Ekong Sampson, APC, Akwa Ibom South, who condemned the hijacking of a commercial ferry travelling from Calabar to Oron last Friday.
Presenting the motion, Sampson said the victims were among passengers forcibly taken at gunpoint after armed pirates attacked the vessel mid-sea.
Eyewitness and local fishermen reported that the attackers ambushed the ferry, commandeered it, and whisked the passengers away to unknown locations.
He noted that at least 15 Nigerians were abducted in the incident, describing it as deeply disturbing and a growing threat to coastal communities in Akwa Ibom and Cross River States.
He further expressed concern that some of the victims were young Nigerians preparing for the 2026 UTME.
The Senate, in its resolution, called on the Chief of Naval Staff, the Inspector-General of Police, and other relevant security chiefs to intensify search-and-rescue operations to secure the safe and unconditional release of the kidnapped passengers.
Lawmakers also condemned the rising insecurity along the Calabar-Oron waterways, describing the route as a critical economic and transport corridor that has increasingly become a hotspot for piracy, kidnapping, and armed robbery despite previous security interventions.
The Senate also mandated its Committees on Navy, Marine Transport, and National Security and Intelligence to investigate the worsening maritime insecurity in the Niger Delta waterways and recommend lasting solutions.
The committee is expected to report back with findings and recommendations.
(Editor: Terverr Tyav)
