Amaechi orders probe of maritime academy over N18bn remittances

Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi has ordered a probe into the financial activities of the Maritime Academy of Nigeria (MAN), Oron, Akwa Ibom State and N18 billion remittances to the institution by the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) in the last five years. Amaechi gave the order following allegations of financial recklessness and large scale fraud leveled against the academy’s rector, Joshua Okpo.

The academy's rector had recently approached Amaechi to accuse NIMASA of starving the institute of Funds. Amaechi immediately called for a meeting with the management of NIMASA and enquired from them why it was sitting on the subvention of MAN, Oron.

This claim was however refuted by NIMASA's acting DG, Haruna Jauro who told Amaechi that the agency had remitted over N18 billion to the academy since 2009. At the enquiry of the minister, the MAN rector, Okpo said he only took over in 2011 to which NIMASA declared that a sum of N13 billion was remitted to the institution since the rector took over. When asked what he had done with the N13 billion remitted to the academy since he took over as Rector, Okpo kept giving incoherent and inconsistent answers. This made Amaechi to immediately call for a probe.