When the news of the appointment of Bashir Jamoh, as the Director-General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), hit the airwaves, there was a sense of calmness that hit the polity. There were no murmurs; instead, there was a beam of light on the faces of the majority that understood the strategic importance of NIMASA in the maritime industry in Nigeria.

As a start, it must be understood in clear terms the objectives of NIMASA visa viz its establishment on the 1st of August 2006. NIMASA was established primarily for the administration of Maritime Safety Seafarers Standards and Security, Maritime Labour, Shipping Regulation, Promotion of Commercial Shipping and Cobatage activities, Pollution Prevention, and Control in the marine environment.

NIMASA also implements domesticated International Maritime Organization (IMO) and International Labour Organization (ILO) Conventions. This is quite a strategic agency in Nigeria’s quest to achieve and sustain safe, secure shipping, cleaner oceans, and enhanced maritime capacity in line with the best global practices towards economic development.

Dr. Bashir Jamoh’s appointment comes at no better time in Nigeria’s bid to further secure the nation’s maritime environment and to stem the ugly trend of sea-robbery, piracy, illegal bunkering, and other sea-based crimes. Those conversant with the reforms in the maritime industry in Nigeria have admitted in numerous forums that Dr. Bashir Jamoh’s contributions are indelible given his innumerable contributions in a career that has spanned over 32 years in various capacities.

Some call him the maritime genius. Some also call him the maritime whiz kid. Whichever side of the fence you stand; you can’t but agree that the new helmsman at NIMASA is a man with a vision and on a mission. He might not be as tall as his academic qualifications, but they are indeed a handful. The count starts with a Ph.D. in Logistics and Transport Management, a Master’s Degree in Management, a Post Graduate Diploma in Management Sciences, and a Diploma in Accounting, respectively.

He has attended several leadership and management courses at the Harvard University US, Oxford University UK, Cambridge University UK, International Training Centre of ILO Turin Italy, Institute of Public-Private Partnership Washington DC, International Law Institute, USA, and Institute for Leadership and Development for the Public Good, USA, Royal Institute of Public Administration UK and World Maritime University, Sweden, amongst others.

Dr. Bashir Jamoh is a Fellow of the International Professionals Managers Association, UK, Chartered Institute of Transport Administration of Nigeria, Chartered Institute of Administration Nigeria, Academy for Entrepreneurial Studies, Nigeria, Institute of Business Development, Institute of Information Management, Africa, and Fellow, Institute of Public Diplomacy and Management. Quite intimidating, you would agree.

The more intimidating is the fact that Dr. Bashir Jamoh comes with a wealth of experience. It can be safely stated that he midwife the transformation of NIMASA into what it is today. He was at various times the Principal Commercial Officer (Operations), Port Services Controller (Onne), Port Services Controller (Tin-Can Island Port), Assist. Chief Commercial Officer (HQ); Chief Admin Officer (Training), Assistant Director, Wet and Dry Cargo (Operations); Assistant Director (Research), Head (Protocol & Logistics), and Assistant Director (Training) and Executive Director: (Finance & Administration) in NIMASA.

Dr. Bashir Jamoh has been credited to have restructured and repositioned NIMASA over the years in the various capacities he held sway. Chief amongst them is the improvement of Revenue Generation and steady remittance to the Consolidated Revenue Fund (CRF) of the Federal Government.

As Executive Director (Admin & Finance) of NIMASA, Dr. Bashir Jamoh saw improved budgetary management of over N117 billion with commensurate value. He also saw the effective co-ordination of revenue generation from operations with a monthly budget of up to $40 million. He spearheaded and managed the process leading to the passage of the bill for the establishment of the charter status for the Chartered Institute of Transport Administrators (CIoTA) in 2019.

Dr. Bashir Jamoh is not just a seasoned administrator. He is also an intellectual authority in the maritime industry in Nigeria, with several books to his credit. He is the author of “Harnessing Nigeria’s Maritime Assets – Past, Present & Future. The book dwelled on criminal negligence of a sector that could easily have made Nigeria a wealthy maritime country.

The book reveals that “The maritime sector plays a vital role in the exploitation, distribution, and exportation of Nigeria’s natural and aquatic resources. It further highlighted the fact that maritime traffic analysis from “2004 to 2013 showed a total of 58,600 vessels calling at Nigerian ports and only 2,465 vessels were handled by indigenous operator through hire, chartered mode and other forms which represent only 4.21 percent of the total performance, while foreigners had 95.79 percent of the total volume. This is quite instructive.

He has also published numerous papers on “Enhancing the Performance of the Maritime Sector in Nigeria: Effect of Macroeconomic variables” in local and international journals. He also has published works on “the Applications of Information Technology in Maritime Transport in Nigeria.”

Dr. Bashir Jamoh is indeed a round peg in a round hole. He is the National President of the Chartered Institute of Transport Administration of Nigeria, Co-Chairman Organizing Committee on National Training on Marine Biological Baseline Studies for the Implementation of Ballast Water Management Convention (2004) in Nigeria, Coordinator, NIMASA Interface with the Automated System for Customs Data ASYCUDA Platform to check out the Incidences of Non-Declaration and Under-declaration of Cargoes, Member, Committee on Implementation modalities of a study report on performance-Based Reward framework for NIMASA, and Member, Committee on Development of job description for NIMASA, amongst others.

The appointment of Dr. Bashir Jamoh as the Director-General of NIMASA has been described as the tonic needed for the rejuvenation of the maritime industry in Nigeria. As the erstwhile executive director of finance and administration, industry watchers described him as the heartbeat of the Agency. This fact is buttressed with the numerous reforms experienced in the Agency since 2016, especially the transformation of the financial and accounting system for efficient, effective management and control of the financial resources of the Agency.

He was also responsible for the general administration and implementation of policies and programmes on recruitment, promotion, discipline, training, welfare, and motivation of human resources and is also charged with the responsibilities of providing tools, equipment, and facilities to staff to enable them to perform their duties efficiently and effectively.

This consequently culminated in NIMASA being awarded as the Federal Agency of the Year 2019 for its significant contribution to the Consolidated Revenue Fund of the Federal Government, as well as its quest for excellence through capacity building, promotion of staff, and automation of processes in the Agency, among others.

The appointment of Dr. Bashir Jamoh is indeed a testament to the unalloyed commitment of President Muhammadu Buhari in setting Nigeria on the path of steady growth and development. The expectations are high, and it is envisaged that the maritime industry in Nigeria would experience tremendous growth and development with Dr. Bashir Jamoh at the helms of affairs. There is indeed a new sheriff in town. This is indeed an appointment so worthy.

The cases of extortion by NEMA piles on with the latest coming from the IDP camps. Where NEMA officials have been catering away relief materials meant for the displaced people of the Boko Haram torn hamlets. Aside from the continuous reports coming last December from the airport deportees that NEMA officials were asking foreign exchange cash before providing the government benefits to deportees, currently NEMA officials are said to be extorting and demanding sex or money in return for relief materials for the IDP citizens. So the question Nigerians are asking today is why the Buhari led government is doing noting about this. the head of the agency when accosted by journalists turned a deaf ear but never refuted the allegations. the entire situation seems to be organised and institutionalised. the next option will be to copy the international courts in a letter.

https://www.nairaland.com/3531912/nema-officials-extort-deportees#52139038

Civilian rule came. I was elected governor of Lagos through the AD (Alliance for Democracy), which came to be the pre-eminent party in the South-West. The PDP controlled the federal government and most states. Quickly, it revealed itself to be a party of authoritarian excess. It boasted it would rule the country for 60 years. Just as quickly I came to the realisation that continuation of thd PDP national leadership might be the death knell of my dream of a democratic Nigeria. As a democrat, I understood equal competition meant that my party could lose a free and fair election. I was and remain ready to take a fair loss. Yet, I was and remain unprepared to see victory stolen from the rightful winner and to see any party install itself in near perpetuity, notwithstanding the expressed will of the people.

My strategic goal became the defeat of the PDP at the national level during this period. When the 2003 election came, the PDP dangled an alliance before the AD. The proposal was that if we supported the PDP at the presidential level, the PDP would not oppose us at the state level. Because of my strategic perspective and the previous legal confrontations I had with the federal government due to its overreach, I rejected the proposal. It sounded too easy to be good. Sadly, some of my colleagues lost sight of the long-term objective; they were enticed to chase after short-term promises. Those promises were hollow. My friends chased themselves into a corner. Their non-opposition to the PDP at the presidential level would be repaid with deception. The PDP outflanked them in the gubernatorial race.

Lagos was to be the only state with an AD governor. From this setback and crippled position, we began the long journey that would reduce the PDP’s boast of ruling for 60 years to just 16.

Where We Are Now

Leading into the 2015 election season, progressive politicians throughout Nigeria and across party lines recognised the nation was in deep trouble. Corruption was rampant. The Boko Haram menace growing. The economy was unbalanced and government policy was not providing the right growth catalysts, despite favourable oil prices. PDP governance had overstayed its welcome. The people were ready for change. And we needed to develop the strategic leadership and determination to achieve the change.

Standing as separate parties, we could not best the PDP. We had tried that path; it led to defeat in 2011. A strategic rethink was needed.

To attain the goal of ousting the PDP and placing Nigeria on the road to progressive governance, the strategic linchpin would be the merger of opposition parties.

Time is inadequate to recount the complex journey toward the merger. My firm position was that only a merger would work. Anything short of that would disintegrate due to a combination of PDP enticement and the internal pressures arising from the strong identification of many politicians with their legacy parties. An ad-hoc alliance would be put asunder by these factors.

Our push for a merger of the old parties into a new entity carried the day. We would join hands to form a collective identity. The CPC and my party, ACN, ANPP, along with progressive elements of the APGA, formed the party. Key elements of the PDP would later join.

For this amalgamation to work, it had to be more than an anti-PDP gathering. It had to present a genuine, positive message that spoke to people’s hopes and aspirations.

We developed the theme of change as our strategic message. The broom became an apt party symbol. We would sweep out the old, sweep in the new and work hard towards prosperity for our country.

We fashioned a tripartite campaign message and strategy message. Security, Economy and Corruption. We would drive these three messages home as if with military artillery. However, we have only our leadership and strategic hammer.

Still all of this would have been to no avail without the right candidate. Given his stature and reputation for integrity, honest dealing and patriotic commitment, there really was no other candidate to have carried the day, than then General Muhammadu Buhari.

Yet, even with such a figure as our candidate, we foresaw the need to construct a public relations strategy to counter false accusations of religious intolerance and parochialism that would be hurled at him. We did this with great success because we prepared for these attacks beforehand.

We established other democratic and leadership strategies for our success, details of which time would not permit me to reveal here. We did not have the vast war chest of the PDP. Our efforts had to be sharper and more compelling. We accomplished this task.

We did not win the election by accident. I had studied the resulting and voting patterns of all the prior elections since 1999. Our team did an honest assessment and detailed assessment of our strengths and weaknesses and those of our opponents.

To win, we knew the votes we needed and identified the likely places and demographic constituencies from which the bulk of those votes must come. We did not waste time chasing votes we would not get. We concentrated on our strengths and the other side’s weaknesses, realising that our defence must be as tight as if we are inside the War College here in Abuja.

The other factor is one that is little spoken of. Our early insistence on biometric voter registration and the use of the card reader on voting day were of strategic importance as it is essential to safeguarding the integrity of the electoral process. In past elections, PDP vote padding had been massive in certain areas. We had to curtail this malpractice to achieve the objective of making the election as fair as possible, allowing us a chance to win.

The card reader minimised the rigger’s ability to steal the election. Before its use, results could be written without regard to the number of actual people who cast ballots. In a polling booth where 50 people actually showed up to vote, the rigger could falsify figures and claim that 500 votes were cast. With the card reader, the rigger could steal no more than 50 votes. The tallies could not be inflated beyond the number of actual voters.

Upon these strategic pillars, we built historic victory. For the first time in the nation’s history, incumbent president and party lost the national election. This historic transition further cemented our democratic evolving tradition and structures, advancing us closer to the overarching vision that guides my political actions.

Completing a personal transition, General Buhari would become President Buhari. And former President Goodluck Jonathan would become a stateman, winning worldwide commendation for conceding defeat, even before the final results were announced.

Where We Are Going

In relative short order, the Buhari administration has done what the prior government seemed unable to do. With the courage and dedication of the military, Boko Haram has been subdued. Also, notable and significant progress is being made against corruption. Press freedoms and civil liberties are protected, putting to lie those who cried that President Buhari would not respect democracy and rule of law.

To move closer to the overarching vision I outlined, we now have to shift primary focus to the economic front.

The decline of high oil prices threatens to be a long-term phenomenon. It placed the nation in recession last year and revealed the structural weakness of our national economy.

Strategic objectives during this period of economic uncertainty must be to re-engineer the economy bottom up, diversify the economic base, strengthen our industrial base, modernise infrastructure, enhance agriculture, and provide employment. And of course, ease of doing business must not be overlooked in order to attract foreign investment.

The lower oil prices also reduced hard currency earnings. This undermined the naira, causing a steep rise in the cost of imports. The higher prices have suppressed aggregate demand, causing a decline in business activity.

The challenge before us is a difficult but not impossible one. If we stick to the progressive beliefs of the APC, we shall overcome these difficulties to place the economy on surer permanent footing.

Government has shown its commitment to these ideals via its budget for this year and by the strong help it is giving state governments to meet their budgetary requirements. The unprecedented stipend programme for the poorest highlights the government’s concern for those who have been left unattended by the dynamics of the marketplace.

Achieving the desired economic restructuring will require a change in economic mindset and strategy. We must avoid the nostrums of mainstream orthodoxy that say government deficits are always bad. In the situation we face, deficit spending is essential to bolster aggregate demand and direct funds to projects that build infrastructure and bolster employment.

We must better harmonise monetary policy with fiscal policy. It undercuts our goals if monetary policy is unduly tight at a time fiscal policy begets deficit spending.

We must also realign trade policy with our need to create a meaningful industrial base and more potent agricultural sector. We can no longer allow cheap imports to preclude the development of industries and sectors strategic to our enduring economic future.

Conclusion

My public life spans over three decades. I have had my share of triumphs. I have felt the sting of setback.

Through it all, I have tried to keep faith with the overarching vision I earlier set forth – of a more democratic Nigeria with a robust economy that provides sufficiently for all-.

Throughout most of this time span, the strategic focus has been on politics, free enterprise and assuring democracy. I believe the toil and sacrifice has been worthwhile. We have secured democracy in Nigeria. Now, our strategic leadership must focus on realising the second part of that vision – the economic component.

It was first necessary to getting the political equation right. From this platform, we can then better reform the economic side.

The profound lesson my experiences as a political leader has taught me is the need to remain faithful to an achievable, well-articulated vision. Then to develop practical strategies and tactics to progress towards that vision. The vision is the unchangeable lodestar. Strategies and tactics may change as events unfold.

One must be intellectually vigilant, inquistive and always examining the utility of strategy and tactics. Always guarding against muddled thinking or allowing emotions to blind you. You make sure, as a leader, that you do not commit the grave error of giving primacy to transient strategies or tactics, over the permanent goal.

If you adhere to these leadership principles, you give yourself the best chance of progress toward your desired goals. In the imperfect world of human endeavour, no one can ask for more than this.

Bola Ahmed Tinubu is a national leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

This the text of a lecture delivered on Wednesday January 25, 2017 at the National Defence College, Abuja.

Liars are at it again manufacturing lies against chief Bola Ahmed Tinubu. We do not care that these quack people spread lies because of course there must be haters in our mist like vultures surrounds a lion, but when people believe these lies and leave hurting comments then it becomes depressing. Tinubu however we look at him has followers who adore and like his forthrightness and achievements. It is for the sake of such well meaning people that I write this to help not give them a wrong idea or lose them over to the negative side. Chief Tinubu remains a father and inspiration to so any your upwardly mobile young men in this country. He has left for them a blue print to follow in the understanding of their country and constituency. Please this appeal is to the young and positive followers of chief bola Ahmed Tinubu whatever you hear read once, get on to the wider media and confirm or cross check before making bitter comments. Hate is real.

A professional NGO called Ethics Professionals Organization, EPO have called on citizens to be careful and ignore the manufactured stories being planted in some segment of the social media about Tinubu and secret trips to the Villa and connection with Dasukigate. These blogs and sponsored individuals who are paid agents continue to manufacture different versions of a story that is totally false and malicious. The NGO believes these individuals suffer from corrupted professional ethics and must be exposed in order not to give journalism a bad name. The NGO has followed the Dasuki gate issue and try hard as many may want to it is clear that Tinubu was not and is not a part of the issue. The crooked headlines and fabricated stories are a waste of time and fit to the trash. Tinubu is not on list. He does not need to make Any secret visits to anyone or anywhere. We as an organization have taken note of the number of planted and outrightly false stories being put out in the social media to impune the reputation of Tinubu. Please ignore them.

NIGERIANS ARE BLIND: PDP

NIGERIANS ARE BLIND: PDP
For 16 straight years the ruling memberships of a party continuously deprived an entire nation of their entitlements to basic rights- like the right to live. The rights to feed themselves or their loved ones, the rights to to health and healthy conditions, deprived of the rights to basic amenities, rights to enjoy what is rightfully theirs. We had for 16 years a ruling elite that deprived its fellow citizens of the rights of their children to compete favorably with the children of other nations. Nigerian adults and their children die from the most basic of ailments; malaria, malnutrition even the thirst for clean water. All because the people they chose to be leaders betrayed them. What the people initially conceived to be a party of the people, a party that had the cooperation and approval of all tribes, became a party of indifference overnight. The people feel betrayed. Not just because they have been deprived but because they felt duped. Duped in the most terrible fashion that only the devil can betray man.  How do you steal and steal from a people until you begin to burrow into funds meant to cater for their lives their sustenance, knowing that the consequences’ is death? How do you pilfer and pilfer until you wipe out the funds meant for infants born with disabilities in the general hospitals, how do you steal and steal and turn tribes against tribes and religion against religion. PDP refused to go after the Chibok girls 24hrs after they were abducted by the Satanists Bokoharam, they refused to even believe the story even as mothers wailed and wept openly on national television. Their president wouldn’t even visit the bereaved in fact he was angry and dashed off to celebrate a fraudulent victory drink in hand in Ekiti.

Today as we all struggle to get on our feet, waiting for a change to take effect, waiting for humongous amounts of our stolen funds to be recovered, years after so much suffering, the PDP still sneaks back secure and sure as always that the people are yet to be wise to their actions. That the people are yet to KNOW, that the people are dead in the reasoning. They are sure because they left the people that way- totally bamboozled, totally BLIND! Yes the PDP believe Nigerians are blind. Why won’t they be blind when instead of asking for where their money went they ask for the state of Biafra. Instead of asking where the healthcare has gone they ask for handouts of garri and rice at election campaigns. The PDP call Nigerians blind because they feel Nigerians are doomed to serve them and will continue to serve them to the end. They say Nigerians are blind and too forgiven because Nigerians cannot see. They cannot see the intruders in their midst. Some people still vote and die for them in all elections, some still queue under the sun to cast their vote for the people who maimed their children with war and pestilence. PDP says Nigerians are blind because even when they can see that the international world came to the aid of the country during the polio epidemic, they say it is the PDPs achievement. We imported trains when we have enough geniuses in schools of engineering to build trains yet the people say PDP has done well. But this writer wishes to tell the PDP that their days are numbered. The people might not see but God sees. The people might be forgiven because of their loving nature which is the nature of all Africans but the day shall come when the God of forgiveness shall ask for accountability. A time shall come when the wrath of the almighty shall fall on them bringing to them the chaos and disunity which they have plunged the people for years and years and years -

It is with amused interest that we notice the sick nature with which the post Nigeria an online news blog, continues to heap trash after trash on APC elder statesmen particularly Cheif Ashiwaju Ahmed Tinubu. Followers of the APC chieftain are continuously alarmed to find headline after headlines of total rubbish being printed as news for the Nigerian masses to digest. If the Post Nigeria wishes to be in the fictional print series they are most welcome. The profession of journalism entails the hard work that is demanded of serious investigation and research.
Headlines like “Ashiwaju Tinubu says i will not release my share of Dasuki funds” or “President Buhari cannot touch me even though i am corrupt” might be laughable but quite annoying especially when these set of impromptu journalists begin to phantom interviews with the APC national leader and actually quoting their imagination as his own words!.
Yes we all want to get rich but if you are actually paid anything substantial for such trash by the PDP why not do them a favor by doing some worthwhile investigations?
Saddest is when responsible people in the society begin to press charges and they are made to look like they are muffling the press. But then it is most important that the youth who are the brains behind such crap realize that we are destroying a serious and important medium which all of us, youth alike, use in communicating proper and important plights that we face in the country. My question is what happens when social media becomes a rubbished medium degenerated to a point of not worth being read by even the worst of gossips? Is it back to the old days when we could hardly speak up to the ills of the society? This write up urges Nigerians alike to begin to sifter through the information provided by blogs like Post Nigeria and reserve our angry comments for when we have used our discretion intuitively to see their filth for what it truly is – filth!

Here is a link to one of their totally fabricated interviews --- I am afraid PDP will stop Buhari in 2019 – Tinubu | Post-Nigeria






I Am afraid PDP Will Stop Buhari in 2019 – Tinubu | Post-Nigeria
Lately, the mass defection of members from the opposition Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, to the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, might have grave repercussions on the 2019 succession plan of President Muhammadu Buhari.
View on www.post-nigeria.com
Preview by Yahoo