Indigenous Ship owners Association of Nigeria (ISAN) has appealed to the new leadership of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) to assist Nigerian ship owners to take their rightful place in the maritime sector.
Making this call in Lagos while receiving the newly- appointed Director General of NIMASA Mr. Ziakede Akpobolokemi who paid a courtesy call to its office, the chairman of ISAN, Chief Isaac Jolapamo lamented the death of indigenous participation in Nigeria’s maritime trade and attributed the problem to the bastardization of the sector by multinationals.
Jolapamo told the visiting Director General that the problem with the sector is that the real stakeholders in the sector are not given the opportunity to make an impact. According to him, “what we want you to do is to check who are the real stakeholders in the industry, most of our members are being hunted by banks, our love is to create employment for Nigerians and not just to make money, it is to place Nigeria and Nigerians in a better side in the community”.
He appealed to the new NIMASA boss that: “ISAN has done not too well because we are not getting supports, we believe that if we start getting supports we will do better, the maritime industry can create more than five million jobs for the general masses”.
Jolapamo also explained that ISAN has also taken an extra step by going abroad to interface with some major multinational company and partner with them to acquire new ocean going vessels and crude carriers and added that the association has also secured a sizeable amount of money to acquire new bottoms.
The ISAN chairman also solicited support of the new NIMASA boss and the top executives of the administration to support the association’s steps by ensuring that the Cabotage law is made to succeed and to also ensure proper disbursement of the Cabotage Vessel Financing Fund.
Responding, the Director General of NIMASA, Mr. Ziakede Akpobolokemi assured the executives of the association that the new leadership of NIMASA has direct backing from the presidency and that he will use the opportunity to better the lot of the ship owners.
Zikade also told the ship owners that his first assignment is the fast and radical implementation of the Cabotage law which according to him, is an Act of parliament and as such the non-implementation of the law becomes an offence.
He also guaranteed ISAN of a good leadership from NIMASA saying that: “the kind of leadership I have come to offer in NIMASA is for all of us to work together, if we fail this means we have all failed but if we pass the entire credit goes to NIMASA, but I can assure you of the full support of Mr. president, the only challenge we are going to get is from Nigerians that are fronting for these people who don’t want change, but I will fight them to the last”.
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