Some stakeholders in the maritime industry have lampooned the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) for allegedly not leaving up to its expectations as the foremost agency set up to pursue shipping development and regulatory matters relating to merchant shipping and seafarers.
The stakeholders who spoke with Shipping Position Daily in response to some of the achievements the Director General of NIMASA Dr, Dakuku Peterside pointed at in the last one year, stated that some of the achievement are far from the truth, even as they urged the DG NIMASA to do more especially on the `security of the Nigerian waters.
The DG NIMASA while reading some of the achievements of the agency during a press conference recently stated that Nigerian was adjudged most outstanding in Port and Flag State Control in the West and Central Africa Sub-Region by the Abuja Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). He said the Nigeria conducted more Certificate of Competency examinations, adding that over 7414 seafarers have gained employment in the last one year.
He said in order to stem the tide of sea robbery and piracy on our waters, NIMASA in collaboration with the Ministries of Transportation, Defence, the Nigerian Navy and other relevant security agencies are tackling the issues relating to maritime security through a multidimensional solution.
However, reacting to some of the achievement of the agency, a maritime security specialist and Anti Piracy Security service personnel, Capt Alfred Oluwasegun Oniye punctured over some of the achievement reeled out by the agency.
The captain insisted that there is no way the agency could have said over 7000 seafarers were placed on board vessels last year, while urging the DG NIMASA to publish the names of the seafarers that were given employment last year.
According to him “ If they say they have employed over 7000 seafarers; that is a blatant lie, lie from the pit of hell , I repeat, but if he (DG, NIMASA) has proof let him publish the names of those employed, I am not saying this because I hate Dakuku, in fact I see him as one of the best DG NIMASA ever had, but the problem is that he is surrounded with people who cannot give him professional advice, he lives based on the fake information they give him, which means he is not too conversant with what is really happening in the industry”.
“The DG should get his fact right, he shouldn’t see seafarers as anything anybody can rubbish, you can’t push us aside because we control the waters, we sail the waters and we control 90 percent of Nigeria’s economy. Because 95 percent of vessels that we have on our waters are merchants vessels and these vessels are manned by seafarers. Nothing comes in and nothing goes out without the seafarer, so that statement that he has employed over 7000 seafarers to me as a lie.”
On security, the maritime security expert lampooned NIMASA for allegedly wasting millions of Naira to organize awards night, he said the money could have been used to create jobs for the unemployed seafarers.
“Do you know how many ea pirate attack we have in Nigeria alone last year, and one of their major job is to provide maritime security, it’s in their Act, and somebody will tell me they are performing, the money they are wasting on all these awards is enough to provide maritime security, they waste billions of naira which is enough to create job for the unemployed seafarers”
On the numbers of certificate of competence (COCs) issued in the last one year by the agency, Oniye also alleged that some staff of the agency are into issuance of fake certificate, while alleging that over 90 percent of members of staff of the agency are corrupt.
“If I say I don’t know that they issue fake certificate, I will only be deceiving you, I know this industry in and out, so the story is true and that is what some people trade within NIMASA there, there was a time I said 90 percent of the staff there are corrupt, you think I don’t have my fact, I am a privately trained detective, I see and I coordinate the entire Africa for British agency on investigation and intelligence, so I see with facts in my hands, when the necessary agency needs it , I will release it to them, we carry out investigation and I have fact in my head, I am the African regional head, so I have facts in my hands of those who are perpetrating these atrocities, but since I am not DSS or EFCC, I don’t interfere but if they need my service and this information, I will give it to them as facts, documented with pictures and videos, I have everything in my archive, is there anything happening on this waters that we don’t know, but we are just after how to make this country work” he said.
Speaking also, the National President of the Nigerian Merchant Navy Officers and Water Transport Senior Staff Association, Engr. Matthew Alalade opined that all the achievements listed by NIMASA will amount to zero, if the country waters are not secured, he said there is need for the agency to beef up the security on the country‘s waters, so as to avoid being tagged a “war risk zone”.
“Since NIMASA held their security summit, there have been one attack or the other, kidnapping and all that, so the government must do something this year, so that Nigeria will not be termed as war risk zone, we don’t know what NIMASA is doing, but let them beef up the security on our waters” he said.
On his part, deputy secretary general Nigerian Merchant Navy Officers and Water Transport Senior Staff Association Mr. John Okpono said lack of engagement with major stakeholders has affected NIMASA, while calling for better synergy between the agency and the major stakeholders in the country.
“Every year, we keep appraising NIMASA, but I think their inability to bring in major stakeholders is missing, if you ask me who are the major stakeholders, the major stakeholders are those who are directly involved, for instance all officers on all vessels belong to Merchant Navy Association, and all ratings belong to MWUN, so this means is that we ought to have been part of every decision concerning seafarers, because the people under reference belong to us”, he stressed.
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