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How Far Can Oyetola Drive Marine and Blue Economy Sector? 

Adegboyega Oyetola

Funso Olojo 

When President Bola Ahmed Tinubu carved out the Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy from the Ministry of Transportation, it was a dream come true for maritime stakeholders who had long longed for a separate ministry to harness the huge potential of the sector.
They hailed Tinubu as a listening President who harkened to the yearnings of the industry operators.
They had then expected that the President would follow this laudable decision with the appointment of a professional with the ability and capacity to drive this novel initiative.
Names of several home-grown industry technocrats such as Barrister Hassan Bello were thrown up as preferred candidates for the position of the minister of the new ministry.
But the much expectant stakeholders were sorely disappointed when another politician was appointed to head the ministry.
The enthusiasm of the critical stakeholders considerably waned when a politician, a one-term former Governor of Osun State, Gboyega Oyetola, was appointed as the pioneer minister of the ministry.
Even though most of these vociferous critical stakeholders lack the ability to voice their disapproval of Oyetola’s appointment, their silent grumblings were audible enough to discerning observers.
The stakeholders, most of whom are playing to the gallery while donning patronizing visages for fear of being labeled rebels and opposition, believed that the appointment of another politician who is bereft of deep knowledge of the industry is a recipe for disaster and a great disservice to a sector that has the potential to lift Nigeria out of economic doldrums.
“Oyetola lacks the capacity, technical acumen and required visage to drive such a critical sector to prosperity” a stakeholder noted.

To him, the man who can drive the new ministry considered the most critical to Nigeria’s economic prosperity should be a man who has the tenacity and agility of Rotimi Amaechi, the former Transportation Minister, the technical and professional competence of Bashir Jamoh, the Director General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), the industry knowledge of Mohammed Bello-Koko, the Managing Director of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA)and the managerial dexterity and acumen of Barrister Hassan Bello, the erstwhile Executive Secretary of the Nigeria Shippers’ Council, all rolled into one.
“But unfortunately, Oyetola lacks any of these attributes.
“The only thing going on for him is that he is a politician and  he is close to Mr President.
“But maritime is a global sector which does not rely on close affinity with the  President but mainly thrives on competence”
” The industry needs someone who can provide the needed leadership, direction and capacity to harness the boundless opportunities in the sector” another industry operator stated.
Even Oyetola is not a top-notch politician couched in the mold of the fiery  Nyesom Wike, the incumbent Minister of Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
“If he were, he would not have lost the gubernatorial seat of Osun state to the dancing Ademola  Adeleke.” another respondent declared.
It was a general opinion among the industry stakeholders that the only covering the minister has are the duo of NIMASA DG, Bashir Jamoh and NPA MD, Mohammed Bello-Koko, who are providing direction, needed capacity, technical support and ability required to fuel the engine of the industry.
Unfortunately, the Nigerian Shippers’ Council has been lost to another politician, they argued.
“The greatest error which the government nay Oyetola will make is to replace these two industry technocrats with another politicians after their first tenure is over” a Lagos-based shipping magnate observed.
Observers believed that if he does, that will signal the beginning of the downward slide of the industry which rivals the oil and gas sector in terms of revenue generation.
“To cover his knowledge gap of the industry, it will be in the best interest of Oyetola to retain the services of the two helmsmen at NIMASA and  NPA who have so far provided the life-saving shield for the minister’ s lack of competence and capacity”  another industry operator stated.
It would be recalled that stakeholders have called for the appointment of an industry technocrat such as the erstwhile Executive Secretary of the Shippers’Council, Barrister Hassan Bello, to head the ministry.
However, they were disappointed by the appointment of a politician who they felt could not provide the needed leadership to the new ministry.
Little wonder industry stakeholders maintained a graveyard silence at the appointment of the former Osun state governor.
Some of the disappointed industry operators who lack the confidence to speak out whispered to our reporter that the appointment of Oyetola as the head of the ministry is a fundamental error committed by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu who has severally been hailed for his many competence-based appointments.
“The  President missed it on the appointment of Oyetola. If he needed to rehabilitate him politically for his loss of Osun Guber seat, the President shouldn’t have given him such a critical industry as the marine and blue economy which is the lifeline of the economy.
“Creating a special industry for maritime, which shows he is a listening President given the general clamour of the stakeholders, is a big plus for Mr. President but appointing Oyetola to head this all-important ministry is a big minus and a drag on the vibrancy and dynamism of the industry”  a frontline industry stakeholder who begged for anonymity for fear of victimisation, declared.
But ASU Beks, a maritime media icon, was not the type to speak tongue in cheek.
With uncommon frankness and candor, Mr Beks said Oyetola has nothing to offer the industry.
In an interview which is a prelude to his forthcoming 70th birthday, the Publisher of the famous Shipping World Magazine described Oyetola as a square peg in a round hole of the new ministry.
He claimed that President Tinubu played politics with the appointment of Oyetola as the minister of marine and blue economy.
“How do you go and establish such a critical ministry that will require technical expertise?
“Then you bring somebody who knows next to nothing about maritime to head the ministry? A ministry that we are hoping would drive this economy.“In Nigeria, we like to politicize everything, are there no APC members in this industry, that are stakeholders, that are qualified?

“I don’t have anything against Adegboyega Oyetola, for me, he is a fine gentleman, not controversial.“But Mr. President should have looked for some other better job for him, not as a Minister of Marine and Blue Economy. He will not deliver”

“I don’t have faith in Oyotola, he doesn’t have the competence, look at the financial sector, look at what Mr. President did. Look at the CBN Governor, look at the economic team.

” You look there, you see experts. Why do we play politics with the maritime sector? A sector that is so critical.
“When Bello-Koko leaves, the next MD of NPA should be somebody from the Nigerian Port Authority.
Let’s stop this idea of looking for politicians to run our ports, for as long as we are doing that, our ports will not grow”.
“It is not just enough for you to go and sign a performance bond, the willpower, the will has to come from this ministry, and the way this ministry is constituted, the will has to come from within.“So I pity our ship owners. They have to put their acts together, they should stop being beggarly, and they should confront the government.

“If they go on like this, in all our lifetime, that CVFF fund will not be disbursed” Elder ASU Beks declared.
The general trepidation among the industry stakeholders is their belief that Adegboyega Oyetola may not possess the requisite attributes and capacity to drive a grade-A sector like the marine and blue economy.
As an insurance expert, maritime is certainly not his familiar turf.
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Analyses

The invisible toll gates:Why National Single Window is Nigeria’s ultimate economic battleground

Monday Discourse with  Ibrahim Nasiru
Walk into any market in Nigeria today, from the commercial hubs of Lagos to the roadside stalls in Yola, and ask why a bag of rice or an imported spare part costs three times what it did last year.
The typical public commentator will blame global inflation, floating currencies, or macro-economic shocks.
But those who understand logistics know the real truth lies buried under layers of paper, manual stamps, and artificial delays at our seaports.
Nigeria’s international trade is suffocating not from a lack of deep water, but from a deliberate design of convenience.
The recent operational rollout of the National Single Window (NSW) has triggered behind-the-scenes panic among Port cartels, and for good reason.
For decades, keeping our clearing processes fragmented, manual, and dependent on desk-to-desk human interaction was the perfect business model for syndicates.
When cargo dwell times drag on for 21 days, those delays are money in the pockets of the gatekeepers and a death sentence for local businesses.
Let us look at the raw field realities. The push by the Nigeria Customs Service to aggressively crash clearance times down to global 48-hour standards is meeting fierce internal resistance.
Why? Because a unified digital ecosystem means you cannot easily manipulate documentation, hide illicit cargo, or demand “mobilization fees” before signing off a container.
The outcry and protests from certain freight-forwarding syndicates aren’t about technical glitches; they are about the sudden closure of invisible toll gates.
This is exactly why governance at our national gateways can no longer be left to the mercy of transactional bureaucratic habits.
Building deep-sea infrastructure like Lekki Port is a massive physical achievement, but concrete and cranes are useless if the administrative processes at the gate remain backward.
 Real structural reform requires turning our Ports into automated, friction-free pipelines that prioritize production over rent-seeking.
If Nigeria wants to survive this fiscal squeeze, the National Single Window cannot just be treated as another glossy IT project launched in Abuja.
 It requires unyielding administrative enforcement to completely dismantle the corrupt cartels managing the manual desk chains.
The invisible toll gates at our Ports must be completely demolished, and that exact same structural discipline must be scaled across our border stations and trade corridors.
The era of managing international trade with 20th-century paper trails is dying. The future belongs to the builders of automated, transparent systems.
Chief Ibrahim Nasiru, a public affairs analyst,  writes from Abuja 
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Headlines

NANTA Exco embarks on seven-day Ghana retreat, fam trip to deepen regional tourism partnership

Gloria Odion, Reporter

The National Executive Council (NEC) of the National Association of Nigeria Travel Agencies (NANTA) has commenced a seven-day executive retreat and familiarisation (fam) trip to Ghana, hosted by Safari World, as part of efforts to strengthen regional tourism partnerships and expand cross-border travel opportunities.

The NANTA delegation was received at Safari World Homes in Accra by the Chairman of the Safari World Group, Mr. Ernest Gyekye, who expressed delight at hosting the Nigerian travel trade leaders.

He assured the delegation of a memorable experience throughout their week-long stay.

Speaking on the significance of the visit, NANTA President, Mr. Yinka Folami, described the retreat and familiarisation tour as a strategic initiative aimed at fostering stronger business relationships and promoting collaborative tourism development across Africa.

“This mission is not a leisure trip,” Folami said. “It is a deliberate step to implement and expand our association’s marketing advocacy for Nigerian brands across borders.”

He noted that Nigeria and Ghana share deep historical, cultural and commercial ties that should be leveraged to drive tourism growth on the continent.

“Nigeria and Ghana share history, culture, trade and people. The future of our tourism cannot be built in silos,” he said.

“This retreat is about moving from policy to practice—creating real products, real partnerships and real movement of travellers between Accra and Lagos.”

As part of the programme, the NANTA executives will engage in strategic business-to-business (B2B) meetings with their Ghanaian counterparts, tour key tourism destinations under the Safari World brand, and participate in cultural exchange activities designed to promote stronger bilateral tourism cooperation.

The itinerary spans Safari World’s three flagship destinations, including Safari Homes in Accra, the Aqua Safari riverfront experience, Safari Island Cruise, Safari Nautica, and Safari Recreation and Sports facilities in Ada, as well as the Safari Valley Eco Resort and Safari Eco Park in Dawu.

Operating under the brand promise, “One World, Three Destinations, Over 20 Unique Experiences,” Safari World is leveraging the visit to strengthen its footprint in the Nigerian travel market while positioning Ghana as a premier destination for leisure tourism, conferences, group travel, family holidays and premium tourism experiences.

A major highlight of the visit will be the Executive Dinner scheduled for July 21 at the Safari Valley Eco Resort, where key stakeholders from Nigeria and Ghana’s tourism industries will deliberate on strategies for deepening travel trade and advancing regional tourism development.

The familiarisation tour is expected to provide NANTA’s leadership with first-hand knowledge of Safari World’s tourism offerings, paving the way for the development of attractive travel packages and stronger business partnerships that will benefit Nigerian travellers and the wider West African tourism industry.

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Customs

Ogun Customs spurns claims of Smugglers’ takeover of Idiroko–Sango Ota trading Route

Funso OLOJO, Editor

The Ogun I Area Command of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has dismissed as false reports alleging that smugglers had taken over the Idiroko–Sango Ota trading route in Ogun State, describing the claims as a deliberate misrepresentation of a traffic incident.
In a statement issued by the Command’s Public Relations Officer, Superintendent of Customs (SC) Chado, the Command clarified that the traffic gridlock on the route resulted from the breakdown of an articulated commercial trailer after it fell into a badly deteriorated section of Atan Road, temporarily obstructing the free flow of traffic.
According to the Command, the vehicles caught in the ensuing congestion were legitimate commercial trucks transporting red palm oil to various local markets and had no connection whatsoever with smuggling activities.
It explained that the large number of heavy-duty trucks trapped in the gridlock may have led some members of the public to wrongly conclude that smugglers had taken over the road.
“The reports that smugglers blocked the road are inaccurate. The disruption resulted from a road accident and poor road conditions. The vehicles involved were lawful commercial vehicles transporting red palm oil for legitimate trade,” Chado stated.
The Command urged journalists, social media users and the general public to verify information before disseminating reports capable of creating unnecessary panic or undermining public confidence in security agencies.
Observers within the border trade sector noted that the allegation does not reflect the prevailing security situation within the Ogun I Area Command, where anti-smuggling operations have been intensified under the leadership of the Acting Customs Area Controller, Comptroller O.O. Afeni.
Since assuming office, Comptroller Afeni has strengthened intelligence-driven surveillance, enhanced collaboration with other security agencies and host communities, and sustained pressure on economic saboteurs operating along the Ogun border corridors.
These measures, according to stakeholders, have resulted in significant seizures of prohibited goods and reinforced the Command’s resolve to safeguard Nigeria’s economy and territorial integrity.
Maritime and border trade stakeholders also cautioned against the spread of unverified information capable of undermining the efforts of security personnel or creating a false impression of lawlessness in border communities.
They stressed that while combating smuggling remains an ongoing responsibility, responsible and accurate reporting is equally critical to ensuring that operational achievements are not overshadowed by misinformation.
The Ogun I Area Command reaffirmed its commitment to sustaining its anti-smuggling campaign while facilitating legitimate cross-border trade in line with the statutory mandate of the Nigeria Customs Service.

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