Rector of Maritime Academy of Nigeria (MAN) in Oron Akwa Ibom State, Commodore Duja Efedua has called on experts in the maritime industry to join hands with the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) in ensuring that Nigeria is re-elected into the Category 'C' of the International Maritime Organization (IMO).
Efedua made the appeal at an event in Lagos on Tuesday.
He advised that come November this year when NIMASA would be going back to the IMO in London to seek re-election, it should ensure that individuals with great minds and ideas in the sector are co-opted into the NIMASA think-tank team.
He advised that Nigeria should come first and that nobody should derail efforts by NIMASA and the Ministry of Transportation in their efforts to get Nigeria back to the category C'
Recalling the poor outing made by Nigeria in 2017, Efedua said” "We did our best, but we couldn't make it, something makes champions different from others, they go back, rejig their efforts and bounce back, this time around I don't think NIMASA alone and the ministry should go out there"
"I think some stakeholders should also come onboard and support the effort of NIMASA, they are the think tank, it is true NIMASA is under the ministry of transportation but they need all the supports they can get"
He advised NIMASA to organize a retreat where all positions would be harnessed before going forward for the IMO election.
He said, "we should sit together and have a small retreat, maybe six hours is enough to talk about what went wrong and what we can do to come back, some of them (stakeholders) have friends, some of them have countries that they have invested huge monies into and they could also join NIMASA's effort in getting us back into the IMO"
"I pray in November this year, the ministry should pick other persons, share them into the MDA's to sponsor so that we can go there with a very robust effort this time and come back happy"
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