The Centre for Marine Surveyors of Nigeria (CMSN) has attributed the inability of Nigerian marine surveyors to secure lucrative contracts from indigenous companies to their preference for foreign firms.
The President of the centre, Mr Bambo Ademiluyi, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos that such advantage, which the foreign marine surveyors had, was unjustified as it had nothing to do with technical competence.
He said: “We have a problem; not with the foreigners, but with Nigerians – the Nigerians, who use the service.
“For instance, I went to submit a bid once to one of the government parastatals (here in Nigeria) because they asked for bids.
“I went there and they said `oh! what company is that?’ and I mentioned the name of the (my) company.
“They said `Ah! Is it a foreign company?’ I said `no. It’s a wholly indigenous company’. Then he said `ehn’.
“So what is wrong with a wholly indigenous company carrying out marine survey? Is it rocket science? It is not.
“Even these foreign companies, how many expatriates do they have in Nigeria? They have just one, sitting in his office.
“ It is the Nigerians in the company that do the survey.
“So the foreign companies are coming here to take way the big money because we Nigerians do not recognise the Nigerian professionals, who are licensed to do these things.”
Ademiluyi, therefore, urged Nigerian companies in the maritime industry to engage the services of indigenous marine professionals.
He said that the association was working hard to ensure that an Institute of Marine Surveyors was established to help eliminate quackery in the industry.
Discussion about this post