Forces driving the transformation of Maritime Academy of Nigeria, Oron BY EDET OKPO

Undoubtedly, the transformation agenda of President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan (GCFR), in ejecting fresh air into the polity to turn around the woes of Nigeria into a land of limitless opportunities, is evidently sweeping across the Maritime Academy of Nigeria, MAN, Oron.

 
The Academy, under the careful watch of an ebullient administrator with unbending determination to give it a face-lift, is steadily earning global attention as more maritime experts, professionals and other stakeholders fall over themselves to visit the Academy in order to appreciate an administration in action.

 
Coming on board as a child of circumstance, arising from the perceived neglect of the host community by the Federal Government in the appointment of a Rector of the Academy, Mr. Joshua Okpo assumed duties in the acting capacity and was able to calm frayed nerves; clean up the system and put it on the path of growth. Mr. Okpo’s outstanding performance in the acting capacity, deservedly earned him the appointment as the substantive Rector and since his induction into office, things have taken a different dimension. The uncommon commitment of Mr. Joshua Okpo has shown that performers are never measured by the number of months or years they have been in office, but they are easily spotted from the outset on the saddle.

 

 In other words, years or months do not determine performance or achievements. Achievers hit the ground running, upon assumption of office even in the face of nothingness. They see ample opportunities to break records, raise the bar of performance when other clueless leaders complain bitterly and blame non-performance on lack of resources. Achievers are guided by clear vision, driven by the burning desire to leave an indelible mark on the sands of time.
Mr. Joshua Okpo, the Rector, Maritime Academy of Nigeria, Oron squarely fits into these apt descriptions of an achiever; a man who has convincingly proven his worth, just within two years on the saddle.
At the risk of sounding sycophantic, Mr. Okpo is the long awaited messiah the once fractured Academy, was waiting for to pull it from the jaw and shackle of underdevelopment, ethnic trappings to the path of progress, advancement, prosperity and a sure future. This may sound fulsome, or incredible, but join me as we triumphantly traverse the length and breadth of the premier Maritime Academy and savor the breeze of transformation cutting across all sectors of the academy.

 
Mr. Okpo’s visionary leadership has witnessed a 24-hour power and water supply with increased security and safety of lives and protection of the Academy properties; hostel facilities for male and female cadets; staff accommodation, Corp members’ lodge; completion of inherited projects; construction of presidential jetty, fire bay, boat maintenance yard, purchase and installation of world-class simulators (GMDSS, APAR, RADAR and Engine) which puts the academy in the class of internationally recognized maritime training institutions; purchase of laboratories equipment, building of more classroom blocks, construction of modern resource centre, renovation of administrative and academic blocks, renovation and extension of cadets’ refectory and smoke room, construction of Rector’s/VC’s lodge; lawn tennis court, construction of sports pavilion; purchase of vehicles such as Ambulance, Buses, Hilux Jeeps, Waste disposal van, Trucks to mention but a few.

 
Besides physical development, Joshua Okpo’s administration has instituted regular national and international training and retraining programmes for both junior and senior staff; harnessed available manpower for maximum productivity; ensured harmonious and rancor-free working environment; instituted weekly jogging exercise to sharpen the mental and physical fitness of the staff for optimal productivity; instituted a monthly Solemn Assembly which has ushered in peace among the two warring communities namely, Udung Okung in EyoAbasi and Idua Ukpatta, both in Oron L.G.A. The Rector has never wavered in his patriotic commitment to the transformation of the academy.

 
Determined to remain focused on his three points agenda anchored on continuity, consistency and commitment to quality service delivery to fast track the Academy to its apogee of greatness, courses in the Academy have been accredited by the National Board for Technical Education while the syllabus is vigorously upgraded in line with the International Maritime Organization (IMO) and globally accepted standards. In this regard, the Academy, recently, organized a critique workshop to produce an acceptable document for the purpose of training Nigerians in Maritime field in line with global best practices. This workshop was declared open by the Secretary General of International Maritime Organization, represented by Mr. Ashok Mahapatra.

 
The Academy is working tirelessly towards the realization of the National Seafarers’ Development Programme (NSDP), where maritime trainees are taken abroad for Maritime training in order to deepen their knowledge in the Maritime industry, thereby bridging the gap which propelled the Federal Government to initiate and pursue this worthy cause. The Joshua Okpo administration is intensifying efforts to catapult the Academy into the two best Maritime Academies in Africa and among the top ten in the world by the year 2020. Already, plans are on top gear to send cadets abroad for mandatory Sea training experience. 

 
As a sensitive institution, the Academy is not lagging behind in its Corporate Social Responsibility to the host communities, demonstrably in the provision of electricity and pipe borne water for the people of the area. No wonder the Joshua Okpo’s administration has enjoyed relative peace, even as he has put in place the Host Community Relations Committee, already yielding the desired benefits in building a bridge of chivalry with members of the host community. 

 
With improved funding, as severally advocated by the Rector at different fora, the Academy would experience less pressure on the already over-stretched facilities as more students stream into the institution for the regular National Diploma, Higher National Diploma, Post Graduate Diploma and other short-term courses.

 
The strength of inadequate funding of the Academy has necessitated a call on the National Assembly to evolve a budgetary allocation for the Academy, while the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) is called upon to increase its funding to the Academy to help it access funds to buy a vessel under the NIMASA Cabotage Vessel Finance Fund (CVFF). Besides, the Rector has extended the call to oil companies, Marine Surveyors’ Outfit, boat yards, seaport terminal operators, shipping lines and crewing agents, among others to contribute towards the funding of the Academy.

 
To curb infiltration by members of the host community into the academy, the Rector has passionately appealed to the State and Federal Governments to construct an alternative route from Boy’s High School, Oron, Udung Okung to EyoAbasi as well as the construction of more hostels in the academy to cope with the influx of students jostling for admission into the academy.

 
As a focused and astute administrator, driven by the burning desire for the emergence of a world-class Maritime University in the nearest future, the following aptly captures the Rector’s Vision for growth and sustenance of the Academy, “achieving our dream University status; boosting internally generated revenue through participation as viable commercial ventures, setting up an Academy consultancy service, interfacing with Nigeria Content Development and Monitoring Board and building stronger ties with the Alumni are part of our vision for growth and sustenance”.

 
Exceedingly impressed with the giant developmental strides of the Joshua Okpo administration, the support of the State Governor, Chief Godswill Obot Akpabio, has been unparalleled. He has graciously provided 31 hectares of land to the Academy to facilitate its upgrading to a Maritime University. Besides, the Akwa Ibom State Governor is happy with the Management and Staff of the Maritime Academy for promoting and sustaining high academic standards when the quality of education in the country is deteriorating.

 
The Minister of Transport, Senator Idris Umar is equally satisfied with the sustained effort of Mr. Okpo to develop the Academy and has urged him not to relent in striving for higher achievements in keeping with the mandate to train all levels and categories of manpower required for the efficient and effective operations of all facets of the maritime and allied industries. The Transport Minister, who bared his mind at the inauguration of the new Governing Council for the Academy, headed by Chief Mike Adiotomre in Abuja, acknowledged the myriad of challenges plaguing the Academy and the urgent need to adequately address them to enable the institution produce the much needed, high quality, internationally recognized, maritime professionals. He announced that efforts have reached advanced stage to upgrade the Academy to a degree awarding institution through affiliation with the World Maritime Academy in Sweden.

 
The Transport Minister also used the occasion to prevail on Chief Mike Adiotomre led Governing Council to address the challenge of berthing facilities for Nautical Sciences and the Marine Engineering Cadets for their mandatory sea time to enable them obtain the various classes of Certificates of Competency (COC) and to create employment opportunities globally.

 
As the news of the monumental achievements of Mr. Joshua Okpo continues to spread like fire in the harmattan, the House of Representatives’ Committee on Marine Transport came calling recently, to see things for itself and the experience was worthwhile. After being conducted around facilities in the Academy, the Hon. Ugwuanyi-led committee, out of fulfillment and satisfaction about the Joshua Okpo’s achievements, assured that the National Assembly would rise to the challenge plaguing the Academy including providing the institution with a training vessel.

 
The committee also assured that the Police post, started by the Rector to beef up security in the area, would be completed for the once warring people of Udung Okung/ Idua Ukpatta to return to their villages and live a normal life. The Rector had told the committee that a host community had deserted their homes as a result of inter-tribal war. He had informed the committee that he had to initiate the Police post project as part of his effort to bring the age-long crisis to an end, having waded into the communal clashes.

 
Asides stakeholders in the Maritime sector in Nigeria pouring accolades upon the Rector for his breath-taking achievements, record was recently broken when the President of the World Maritime University, Professor BJorn Kjerfve visited the Academy at the behest of the Rector. It is the first time the Academy has played host to such an august visitor in its many years of existence. After inspecting facilities in the Academy, Professor Kjerfve could not hide his feelings when he declared that the Academy has the infrastructure, facilities and manpower to assume the status of a Maritime University and called on the Federal Government to fast-track the actualization of the dream. 

 
Deservedly, the Rector’s cap has been crowned with awards of excellence and laurels arising from his monumental achievements, earning him more friends than foes.

Edet Okpo, a journalist writes from Uyo, Akwa Ibom State.