The Minister of Transport, Mr Rotimi Amaechi has ordered a probe
into the financial activities of the Maritime Academy of Nigeria, MAN, Oron in
Akwa Ibom State and the remission of N18 billion by the Nigerian Maritime
Administration and Safety Agency, NIMASA, to the institution within the last
five years.
Amaechi’s demand for a full audit of the institution’s finances
is predicated on allegations of financial recklessness and large-scale
corruption leveled against the institution’s rector, Mr Joshua Okpo.
This was after the rector had repeatedly accused NIMASA of
starving the school of funds through the agency’s alleged flagrant refusal to
release the statutory five per cent subvention funds to the school.
Leadership reports that Amaechi had summoned the management of NIMASA to his
office and asked why it was sitting on the subvention of the institution. This
led the acting Director-General of NIMASA, Mr Haruna Jauro to inform him that
the agency has remitted over N18 billion to the academy since 2009.
Upon being asked to explain by the Minister, the Academy’s
rector stated that he only took over in 2011 to which the NIMASA DG declared
that a sum of N13 billion was remitted to the institution since the rector took
over.
Amaechi, who was reportedly alarmed by the sum involved became
angry with Okpo whom he accused of feeding him with ‘lies’ about the true
situation of the disbursements.
He asked what the huge funds were used for against the backdrop
of lack of physical infrastructural development of the institution. To this,
Ekpo was said to have given inconsistent and incoherent answer.
The Minister consequently ordered an immediate audit of all the
amounts said to have been remitted to MAN since 2009.
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