Capt. NUGA knocks FG, NIMASA Over Woes of Nigerian Maritime Students, Cadets

…Wants FG to take the lead, set up scholarship scheme 

…Moves for a Captain or Mariner to be appointed as NIMASA DG 

The Rector, Merchant Navy Maritime Academy, Sagamu, Ogun State, Capt. Bola Nuga has blamed the challenges facing the Nigerian maritime students and cadets on the inability of the federal government and the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, NIMASA to encourage the students and cadets through provision of training vessels and scholarships for the students.

Nuga who stated this in his submission as a panelist during the Annual Maritime Students and Youth, AMSAY Conference organized by the Platforms Communications with the theme, “Solving The Challenges Of The Nigerian Maritime Students/Cadets” in Lagos on Monday, disclosed that during their time at the Nigerian Institute of Oceanography and Marine Research, NIOMR, they had support from the government adding that such support as they enjoyed were non-existent as at today.

“We were encouraged, the government gave us a lot of encouragement. Oceanography then has three or four vessels though not foreign going but every cadet can always go onboard, see what navigation equipment are, what marine engine looks like. We go to sea with them and come back.

“But it might be very difficult for majority of maritime schools that we have now to have a training vessel but if we cannot have that, what is NIMASA doing? What is the federal government doing? These students need to be encouraged. The encouragement Captain Ojutalayo is giving these students on yearly basis, can’t we have these shipping companies, these oil companies coming in to assist Platforms Communications in encouraging them?

“We had the three of them that were penciled down today, they addressed (debated before) us, one will win, one will be honoured. The winner will go home with N100,000, it will go a long way to say next time I want to be the best too. What are the oil companies and the shipping companies and the major players in the industry doing to encourage them?

“On our own part, the challenges facing these students are enormous but I must tell you, the larger blame must go to the government, NIMASA especially. The kind of protracted network they are giving us there is too much. Yes, they are the regulators of the industry but they are not playing a good role as the regulator of this industry. May be because the professionals we have among them are not much. Why can’t we have a Mariner appointed as DG NIMASA? If somebody tells you that we don’t have a Captain or a Mariner Engineer that can head that place, no, we do!”, he stressed.

While contending that the government was not really doing what it was supposed to do and don’t know why it was so, the Merchant Navy Rector called for the reconsideration of the Cabotage Act which he said was not working in Nigeria.

His words, “Let us put into consideration the Cabotage Act. Is Cabotage Act working in this country? During our own time, whether I am on my uniform or not, I will walk majestically to the port, flash my ID card and I will be allowed to go in without any embarrassment. I will go onboard any vessel and the captains will be willing to welcome you as a cadet, give you books, give you gifts and give you so many things. Can any of these our cadets go to any port in Nigeria? No!

“So, how are we now encouraging them? We need to really deal with all this because if there is anywhere that there is job, it is at sea and if we have job at sea, yet you are not encouraging those ones that are coming out to say we want to do it, what are we doing?

“There’s another problem that we have. These cadets you are seeing here and those ones that are not able to come here, are the serious minded ones that want to be mariners but if NIMASA wants to give scholarships, they will go and give scholarships to the children if the Ministers, Commissioners, senators. It is not so!

“I agree that mentorship is very important but I tell you, running a maritime school is very expensive. It is not all the parents of these cadets that have enough money. If they have money to pay for their school fees, by the time they come out and they want to go for their mandatory courses, where do they get the money from?

“So, the government needs to look at them and come up with a scholarship so that they can have scholarship to assist them. It is very important.

“So, I am imploring that more conferences should be organized. Our students need encouragement and the only way we can do it is by the government taking the lead. Once the government leads, we have some big players that can follow suit. Some of these students, when they get out, to even onboard to serve becomes a problem. We need to look at all that.”

Photo: A cross-section of the Nigerian maritime students and cadets who participated at the just concluded AMSAY Conference in Lagos on Monday.

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