SEVERAL stakeholders in the Nigerianmaritime industry expressed dismay at President Goodluck Jonathans awkward interest in the maritime industry, stressing that never in the history of this country has the sector been saddled with administrators who knew next to nothing about the industry as now.The stakeholders who also appealed to the President not to pursue policies capable of further weakening the industry spoke against the back-drop of Mr. Presidents recent appointment of former Governor Adamu Muazu as the Board Chairman of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency NIMASA, also coinciding with the appointment of a university lecturer, Mr. Patrick Ziakede Akpobolokemi as the Director General of the same NIMASA with no relevant industry experience whatsoever.We have never had it so bad. We know nothing remarkable can come out of this combination. Suddenly, everything, even core industry matters have recklessly been politicised remarked a ship master, who pleaded with the Presidency not to continue with its present policy misadventure.Pointing out that in the past, special efforts had always been made to ensure that at least one of the two appointments would be occupied by a stakeholder with relevant experience, the shipping guru who spoke on condition of anonymity said the association had refrained from making a collective statement so as not to give a wrong impression to the public that the body was totally against the President, but was against his warped policy in the maritime industry.Speaking in the same vein, another industry operator stated that bringing two green horns at the same time to head the nations apex maritime industry merely showed that Mr. President did not understand the importance of the sector which despite all abuses remains the countrys second largest revenue earner.Politics apart, it is either President Goodluck hates this sub-sector; or he is too engrossed to care about what such decisions would mean to the proper or desired growth of this sector. Come to think of it, how do you explain the idea of playing politics with such core economic issues A country like Japan will never make such mistakes. No wonder the Asian countries are where they are and Nigeria is here poorly lagging behind the revered industry operator and freight forwarder stated addign that, President Jonathan was scheduled to further retard the development of the sector at this rate.Investigation by the Nigerian Tribune showed that not only had the agency been turned into a political god-fathers-dumping ground of some sort, from 1999 till date, only two NIMASA staff had been allowed to rise up to the level of Directors, a development which not only retarded promotion and ability of career officers, but had also denied the country of either having round pegs in round holes and getting the best out of the agency.So, literarily speaking, everybody was variously brought and dumped on the agency, and tasked to variously tinker with the administration of the agency: people from banks to politicians who have served full tenure in their political callings.Sadly enough, some lawyers who were indicated to have put in almost 20 years were still at a Deputy Director level, while some of their juniors at the bar but with powerful god fathers variously brought in were placed above them.Perhaps, Nigerians need no longer wonder why the Nigerian Ports Authority had continued to rise and rise in status and international recognition while the NIMASA had continued to slide and dwindle by the day. It is the Government policy, perpetuated by successive governments, and seemingly peaked in Jonathans administration.The present Managing Director of the Nigerian Ports Authority NPA joined the authority in 1984 as Pupil Engineer in Port Harcourt, and has gradually risen to the position of the Managing Director in 2010, essentially because he had a stable and steady work environment. If Suleiman were in the NIMASA, he would be too lucky to have risen to the position of a Deputy Director! All the current Directors, with the exception of only two joined the NIMASA in less than 10 years ago.
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