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Minister of Transport, Rotimi Amaechi, has disclosed that the Federal Government will soon lay off unqualified members of staff at the Maritime Academy of Nigeria (MAN), Oron as a way of raising the standards of Nigeria’s foremost maritime training institution.
Amaechi who was guest at a breakfast radio programme, ‘Fact File’, monitored on the network service of Ray Power FM, said the school was far from attaining its full potential due to low quality of academic staff and poor management of about N19 billion that was given to the school by Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA).
His comments, confirmed fears in the Academy of a likely massive job loss that will cut across the senior, middle and junior cadres of the school’s workforce.
He said the school is not producing employable graduates because some of the academic staff are either unqualified or possess certificates they cannot defend.
The minister narrated to his hosts on air, how the new rector Cdr. Duja Effudua (rtd) reported to him that one of the academy’s lecturer who claimed to possess a Ph.D degree in Geography could not answer simple questions about the longest seas and rivers in the world.
According to him, his decision to set up a committee to look into the academy was borne out of concern to bring out the best from the institution. He added that what he is doing with the Academy is a replication of the state of emergency he declared in the educational sector in Rivers State, when he was governor.
On the recently announced suspension of admissions for two years, the minister said the affected students will not be affected adversely as the suspension is in their interest.
He accused a former Rector of the academy of mismanaging N19b which the school got from statutory remittances from Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA).
Amaechi said the former Rector refused bringing contracts for quality constructions to the ministry for approval and alleged that he split the contracts to be accommodated by the N250m threshold of his approval limit.
Since the setting up of a 6 Man Interim Management Committee chaired by Chief Adebayo Sarumi, which some Stakeholders adjudged to be illegal, there has been high degree of tension in the academy of fears of mass sack of workers.
The committee which commenced work in September has six months to complete its assignment, before the rector which was appointed to under study the committee takes over.
They are at present carrying out their assignment in the academy.
They have collected all staff information and data through questionnaires and other records of all the staff in in the academy
