• Sets March Take –Off Date
After about one year after his predecessor in office gave assurances that the much-expected Maritime Bank will soon kick- off, incumbent transport minister, Alhaji Yusuf Suleiman has directed that arrangement should commence for the take-off of the bank’s operations.
Sources at the ministry of transport told our correspondent last week that the minister has already directed that appropriate departments in the ministry should liaise with the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) to commence work on the documentation and essential requirements for the take off the bank.
The directive is to enable officials of both the ministry and NIMASA to start liaising with the appropriate regulatory agencies for issuance of operations licenses.
A top official of the ministry who spoke on condition of anonymity told our correspondent that talks have already started between the ministry of transport, NIMASA and the ministry of finance ministry officials as well as Central Bank of Nigeria officials.
“The honourable minister has directed us and NIMASA to start working on the documentation, he wants it done as fast as possible”, he disclosed. The source also added that a March, 2011 deadline has been given for the take-off of the bank.
When reminded that the same minister had about two weeks ago at a stakeholders’ forum foreclosed the injection of fresh funds into the maritime sector on account of alleged non-accountability and non-prudence on the part of chief executives of some of the agencies, the source explained that the minster’s intention was probably to divert all floating funds into the proposed bank.
No one at NIMASA was willing to talk on the issue because according to them, the director general has just taken over and no one could say anything on the issue of the bank now.
Similarly, the take-off capital for the proposed bank could not be ascertained as at press time.
Discussion about this post