The Rector of Star Maritime Academy, Itele Ota, Mr. Reuben Ovia has blamed the apex maritime regulatory agency, the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) for its misplaced priorities especially in sending Nigerians to maritime schools abroad for training and education under the Nigeria Seafarers’ Development Programme ( NSDP).
The Rector disclosed this during the passing out parade of about twenty cadets in the Academy on Saturday in Ota.
According to him, the money used by the Nigeria Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, NIMASA, to send young Nigerians abroad can be used to develop both public and private maritime academy in Nigeria and will still serve the purpose behind it establishment.
Lamenting, Mr. Ovia noted that if proper training and the necessary facilities are made avaliable for cadets in Nigeria, there will be increase in the maritime sector and the economy at large; adding that sending Nigerians abroad lack sincerity of purpose.
In his words “cadets that pass out of this school can compete with anybody from any part of the world but there is too much politics in developing human capacity in Nigeria, government is training seafarers in Malaysia, Philippines, UK and so on and is the money used to send those student abroad is it not okay to use it to purchase equipment for government schools like MAN Oron instead of using Nigeria money to develop foreign schools, human capital over there, can’t they also use some of the money to encourage private maritime academy, but because of dirty politics they neglect us and send our youth abroad.”, He said.
He however disclosed that one of the foreign school Nigeria government sent Nigerians to have been writing to him that they would like to partner with him to train Nigerian youths and in some cases may send the students to their institution in Croatia.
His words, “A foreign school from Croatia want to partner us to issues certificate up to doctorate degree level, they told me Nigeria government do send student to them but they want me to partner with them to train Nigerians, they have sent me their courses but our government is finding it difficult to train our student here, the school wrote me letters, send me mails, so if a foreign school of that magnitude can give us recognition why are we finding problems for ourselves all because of politics will that help us or will you grow up with that, anyway, Jesus was not recognized in Nazareth that happened to be his home state”.
“Private schools are being marginalized no doubt about that sometimes I wonder whether we are not part of Nigeria because we are a private school why I say so is because there is Education Trust Fund, ETF, is the money meant for only government institutions? Why is it that private schools cannot also benefit from the fund because I want to know whether private sectors are not also contributing to the GDP then why is the fund only meant for government school,” he asked.