The Committee on Maritime Safety, Education, and Administration of the House of Representatives has announced that it will be conducting an investigation into contractors who have abandoned projects at the Maritime Academy of Nigeria in Oron, Akwa Ibom State.

Additionally, the committee has resolved to summon the leadership of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) over their failure to remit the statutory 5% allocation to the Academy for over a year.

This decision was made following a presentation by Commodore Duja Emmanuel Effedua (retd), the Rector of the Academy, during an oversight function session with the committee on Thursday.

During the interactive session, the committee’s chairperson, Khadijah Bukar Abba Ibrahim, expressed the committee’s intention to thoroughly investigate all contractors who have abandoned projects since the establishment of the institution. The aim is to hold them accountable for every penny received and to serve as a deterrent for future cases of abandonment.

Representing the chairperson, Vice Chairperson Hon Uduak Ududoh, a member of the committee from Akwa Ibom, stated that upon returning to Abuja, the committee will correspond with the institution. It was stressed that the practice of abandoning projects after taxpayers’ money has been paid must not be allowed to persist.

“We will investigate projects dating back to the inception of the school. When we reconvene in Abuja, we will instruct the institution’s clerk accordingly. We cannot continue in this manner. These contractors are Nigerians, and given the opportunity, they may embezzle the money and abandon the projects. We will thoroughly examine these matters, as it involves Nigerian funds,” Ududoh explained.

The committee also directed the Rector to identify and expose any staff members responsible for the leakages mentioned in his presentation. It was emphasized that appropriate action must be taken against them to deter others from engaging in similar actions.

Expressing concern, the committee noted that the statutory 5% allocation from NIMASA has not been paid for over a year, and as a result, it has resolved to summon the leadership of the agency.

During his presentation, the Rector lamented the state of infrastructural decay at the academy, revealing that the International Maritime Organisation had threatened to remove Nigeria from the list of approved places for maritime training due to the situation. He attributed this deterioration to the mismanagement by individuals who prioritized trivial matters over the institution’s affairs.