Even as crisis is currently rocking the Nigerian Indigenous Shipowners Association (NISA), the vehicle for the annual maritime industry exhibition; the Nigeria Maritime Expo (NIMAREX), organising secretary for the 2015 edition of the expo; Barrister Osuala Nwagbara has assured that the event would not be adversely affected by the internal crisis rocking NISA.
Nwagbara who is also a maritime lawyer told Shipping Position Daily that the (NIMAREX) will definitely hold in March 2015.
Even as crisis is currently rocking the Nigerian Indigenous Shipowners Association (NISA), the vehicle for the annual maritime industry exhibition; the Nigeria Maritime Expo (NIMAREX), organising secretary for the 2015 edition of the expo; Barrister Osuala Nwagbara has assured that the event would not be adversely affected by the internal crisis rocking NISA.
Nwagbara who is also a maritime lawyer told Shipping Position Daily that the (NIMAREX) will definitely hold in March 2015.
He said in Lagos, that even though the maritime expo is the brainchild of NISA, the event will surely hold with or without the ship owners group.
He stressed that NISA as a maritime group is not in charge of NIMAREX, adding that the body is however a stakeholder in the expo.
He said that apart from NISA, agencies under the federal ministry of transport all have a stake in organising NIMAREX, noting that plans are still ongoing to make NIMAREX 2015 a huge success.
Apart from maritime operators, including freight forwarding groups, corporate organisations from the oil and gas sector are also partakers in the annual exhibition.
Nwagbara said, "NISA is just a stakeholder in NIMAREX, though it was initiated by NISA and we cannot deny that fact but it is not NISA that runs NIMAREX"
"NIMAREX was an initiative conceived by NISA, it was a brilliant idea by them, but NIMAREX has come to stay, NIMAREX will go on without NISA"
"If NISA opts out from NIMAREX today, then I will tell you that there will be no problem hosting the NIMAREX event", Nwagbara assured.
He further said that NIMAREX has been stabilised and can easily function with or without some interest groups.
According to him, NIMAREX gets it funds from stakeholders including operators from the private and public sector, adding that NISA is also an organisation operating in the sector.
Referring to the allegations of fraud that were leveled against NISA President; Capt Niyi Labinjo, Nwagbara maintained that, “the fact that there is an apparent allegation of scandal does not in anyway mettle the significant of NIMAREX"
"As an international event holding in Nigeria, without one or any of the organisation, it will hold", Nwagbara assured.
He further explained that as an annual event, the committee members are drawn from across all institutions in the maritime sector.
He reiterated that NISA is important to NIMAREX because of its shipping and manpower development roles to the industry, but submitted that it should not be confused that without NISA there will be problems hosting NIMAREX 2015.
Discussion about this post