NIMASA Floating Dock No Longer Sea Worthy, Lost Value
… Agency confused on way forward
By Joy Enamuna
Few months ago, the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) handed over the N50 billion (Nigerians Tax Payers money) Modular Floating Dock on private partnership.
In February, they equally announced plans to move the dock to Continental Shipyard in Apapa, the deployment was only done on paper and lips but not back with action. Since then, stakeholders in Nigeria’s maritime industry apparently do not know the whereabouts of the Floating Dock. The most serious concern now is that is the information that the floating dock is no longer Sea worthy and has lost it value.
The agency (NIMASA) who hurriedly acquired the floating dock in a bid to embessel public funds without arrangements on how it would be utilised, equally went as far as spending Trillions in covering up their ‘official mistake’.
NIMASA kept wasting federal government funds and lining their pockets in the name of ‘official maintenance’ without any accountability and transparency on the amount being spent on maintenance.
This delay has fueled skepticism among industry watchers who question NIMASA’s commitment to managing the multimillion-dollar asset effectively.
The acquisition raised so many questions in which NIMASA till date has refused to answer, why some was of the opinion that it would be a significant boost to Nigeria’s maritime infrastructure, as it is also aimed at carrying out maintenance and repairs of Nigerian vessels.
However, promises of deployment have been repeatedly unfulfilled, leading to accusations of underutilization and mismanagement.
Criticism has been directed at NIMASA’s leadership, particularly under former Director-General, Bashir Jamoh, for perceived lapses in strategic planning and execution.
He suggested a reevaluation of NIMASA’s approach, advocating for dedicated professionals to manage the asset independent on the agency’s leadership.
Former National President of the Nigeria Merchant Navy Officers & Water Transport Senior Staff Association, Engr. Matthew Alalade, expressed concerns about NIMASA’s decision-making process, urging greater consultation with stakeholders and consideration of concessioning the dock to established shipyards.
Amidst these concerns, a staff of NIMASA who pleaded anonymity offered a critical perspective on the situation:
“The challenges we face with the floating dock can largely be attributed to the previous leadership’s reluctance to heed expert advice, which unfortunately has resulted in the asset becoming nearly outdated before being fully operational.”
Although, the representative further stated that the new Director-General, Dr. Dayo Mobereola, is aware of the issues and committed to resolving them.
“Dr. Mobereola has been thoroughly briefed about the current status and complexities surrounding the floating dock.
He will be actively engaging with technical experts and stakeholders to expedite its deployment and ensure it operates at full capacity in no distant time.” he said.
