Expert blame leadership instability in NIMASA for poor maritime industry devt

Worried by the underdeveloped state of the nation’s shipping sector, Bolaji Akinola, CEO of Ships & Ports in a review of the sector in the last 16 years, has blamed leadership instability in the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), for the poor development of shipping business in Nigeria.

According to him, NIMASA, which is responsible for not only regulating shipping activities and docklabour, but also developing Nigerian tonnage, has consistently failed to deliver on its mandate since inception.

“NIMASA is at the heart of the growth and development of the nation’s maritime industry and its failure is the failure of the maritime industry and a disservice to the Nigerian economy. Two factors stand out strongly for the failure of NIMASA over the years. One is leadership instability while the other is the undue politicisation of appointments into the board and top management positions of the agency,” he explained.

Continuing, he says: “The offices of the director-general and the executive directors have been most hit by politics such that before the appointment of Patrick Akpobolokemi as head of the agency in December 2010, there had been too frequent changes in the leadership of NIMASA. From May 1999, when the nation returned to democratic governance till date, NIMASA has had 10 DGs with an average tenure of one year-seven months each.”

The agency, which was formerly known as the National Maritime Authority (NMA) was transformed into NIMASA, consequent upon the fusion of the NMA with the defunct Joint Maritime Labour Industrial Council (JOMALIC) on 1st August 2006. Since then, only two persons have been appointed from within the organisation as substantive CEOs.

Akinola further said that the leadership instability at NIMASA – a function of the brazen pursuit of powerful individuals to seize control of the agency and its enormous resources – has led to underdevelopment of the maritime industry.

The agency, he said, is struggling because there has been undue over-politicisation of appointments into its board and executive management at the expense of professionals and to the detriment of proper policy formulation, growth and development of the shipping sector.

While bemoaning the fact that Nigerian politicians have no respect for the law setting up the agency, he added that this absolute disregard to NIMASA Act has resulted to appointments of DGs in contravention of the NIMASA Act of 2007.

A breakdown of the appointment shows that the first was John Egesi, who spent barely three months in office before he was thrown out in 1999 as a result of series of political intrigues. The second was Ade Dosunmu, who served from May 2007 to July 2009.

George Eneh took over from Egesi and was in office for less than a year before his replacement by Ferdinand Agu. Agu had the fortune of heading the agency for over four years and the Cabotage Act was passed during his tenure but after he allegedly fell out with then Governor of his state, Chimaroke Nnamani, he was replaced by Festus Ugwu of blessed memory. After Ugwu, came the creation of NIMASA and the appointment of Mfon Usoro – the first female DG – on 1st August 2006. Usoro’s tenure lasted for barely nine months before the appointment of Dosumu in May 2007.

By July 2009, another political power group emerged paving way for Dosumu’s replacement by Temi Omatseye. Eighteen months into Omatseye’s tenure and with the demise of President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua in 2010, yet another power block emerged. Omatseye was kicked out, paving the way for Patrick Akpobolokemi who had the fortunate of completing his first four-year term and was reappointed by, President Goodluck Jonathan.

With Jonathan losing the presidential election in 2015 to Muhammadu Buhari, it was clear that Akpobolokemi’s days in office were numbered. By August 2015, his second four-year term came to an inglorious end, eight months after.

“The intrigues and power play that characterised appointments and removals of NIMASA chief executives in the past followed the same pattern and until this trend is halted, meaningful progress may yet be far from the maritime sector.”