APC brushes aside Amaechi, commends Buhari on NIMASA

 

• Says appointment of new DG based on competence, not nepotism

 

BY OUR EDITOR

Even with the Minister of Transportation Rotimi Amaechi saying he was not aware of the appointment of a new Director General for the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), a critical agency of the Federal Government under his supervision, his party, APC, has congratulated President Muhammadu Buhari on the fresh appointment.

APC also rose in defence of the President, chastising those who had read nepotism into Buhari’s exercise of his constitutional right to appoint and fire.

The Ministry of Transportation had confirmed the appointment of Bashir Jamoh as Director-General of NIMASA, in place of Dakuku Peterside, whose first tenure will be expiring March 10. The appointment according to media reports, has a presidential approval.

Notwithstanding Amaechi’s unequivocal declaration that he was unaware of the development, the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) has said Jamoh’s appointment was based on competence and not nepotism as being alleged in some quarters.

Bashir, according to some media reports, is said to be closely related to President Buhari.

But the Deputy National Publicity Secretary of the APC, Mr Yekini Nabena in a statement on Friday faulted the notion that the head of NIMASA must come from a particular section of the country.

READ: Northern interest groups jostle for NIMASA top job as uncertainty surrounds Peterside’s future

“NIMASA is not the birth right of any state or geopolitical zone. In fact, a rundown of the heads of the maritime regulator shows that from inception when NIMASA was formerly the National Maritime Authority (NMA), heads of the organization were appointed from different parts of the country. Dr. Bassey U. Ekong was the Director-General in 1988. Alhaji Munir Jafar was replaced by Buba Galadima, who was NMA DG from 1996 to 1998. He was succeeded by John Egesi. Dr George Mbanefo Eneh was appointed Director-General and was followed after a year by Architect Ferdinand Agu.

“Thereafter, Engineer Festus Ugwu was appointed and was followed by Mrs. Mfon Usoro. She was succeeded by Dr Shamsideen Adegboyega Dosunmu. He was followed by Temisan Omatseye. In December 2010, Zaikede Patrick Akpobolokemi was appointed DG/CEO NIMASA. He was succeeded by Dr Dakuku Adolphus Peterside. Recently, President Buhari approved the appointment of Bashir Jamoh as the Agency’s Director General”, Nabena explained.

The Bayelsa-born APC chieftain thanked President Buhari for appointing an experienced bureaucrat with a vast knowledge of the maritime sector.

READ: Buhari shuns Amaechi’s man, Peterside, goes North for NIMASA DG

“We can all see the achievements of the president in the transport sector. Jamoh’s appointment further demonstrates the government’s commitment to revamping the sector. Besides, Jamoh’s competence is not in doubt. With 32 years of professional experience in the transportation and maritime sector, he is currently the Executive Director for Administration and Finance at NIMASA. He is also the current president of the Chartered Institute of Transport Administration of Nigeria (CIoTA).

“He is an experienced bureaucrat who holds a PhD specialising in logistics and transport management, Master’s Degree in management from Korea Maritime and Ocean University and author of the book, Harnessing Nigeria’s Maritime Assets: Past, Present and Future. We should support any Nigerian with such wealth of experience to further reposition NIMASA after the efforts of the outgoing DG, Dakuku Peterside,” Nabena counselled.