A former Minister of Interior, Capt. Emmanuel Iheanacho (retd.), has advised the newly-appointed Director-General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, NIMASA, Dr Dakuku Peterside, to court indigenous ship owners.
Iheanacho, who is the Chairman, Genesis Shipping Worldwide, spoke in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos.
The ex-minister also pledged the support of indigenous ship owners for Peterside.
Ihenacho said: “It is our hope that he would concentrate his efforts in a genuine attempt to grow indigenous capacity through a judicious use of the Cabotage Vessel Financing Fund (CVFF)”.
The mariner said the new director-general must make Cabotage provisions work.
Iheanacho explained that Peterside would need to understand the difference and the distinction between the administrative responsibilities for the safety of shipping and security of the maritime environment.
The mariner said: “Safety of shipping and its associated costs is a NIMASA function while the security of the marine environment is the responsibility of the Navy”.
He said: “NIMASA should be refocused to carry out its core maritime industrial safety and local capacity development responsibilities, while simultaneously demilitarising the outlook and presentation of the agency”.
“We welcome Mr Peterside as the director-general of NIMASA. He is a good man. We hope his appointment would mark the beginning of a positive change in the focus and administrative interventions of the agency (NIMASA)”, Iheanacho told NAN.
