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“Where is Adegboyega Isiaka Oyetola?”

-maritime industry on auto-pilot as Minister’s whereabouts unknown

–maritime stakeholders express concerns over continued absence of minister at major public events

FUNSO OLOJO

Maritime stakeholders in the industry have expressed concerns and worries over the continued absence of the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Gboyega Isiaka Oyetola, at major high-stakes functions in the sector.

The concerned industry operators, who seemed to be expressing genuine agitation over the whereabouts of the minister, observed that Oyetola has consistently absented himself in the last few weeks from some critical government and corporate functions that signpost the core functions of his ministry.

According to them, such events were attended by the representatives of the Minister.

They make copious references to the international workshop on Deep Seabed activities held on Wednesday, 18th- Thursday 19th, 2024 in Abuja where the minister, due to the importance of the meeting, was supposed to welcome participants but was represented by Oloruntola Olufemi, the Permanent Secretary of Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy.

Similarly, the stakeholders pointed to the two-day 4th Annual Symposium and workshop organized by the African Marine Environment Sustainability Initiative (AFMESI) held in Lagos on September 24th- 25th, 2024 where he was also represented.

More poignant among the events in which the inexplicable absence of the minister raised the adrenaline of the stakeholders was the ongoing 79th United Nations General Assembly(UNGA) 2024 at New York, United States of America.

The concerned stakeholders expressed alarm over his absence at the global event where they believed he should have used the platform to sell the programmes of the ministry to the global world.

According to them, that was one absence too many.

Similarly, the World Maritime Day held in Lagos on Thursday, September, 26th, 2024 which the Minister was supposed to have declared open, was done on his behalf by Mr Olufemi, the Permanent Secretary.

” We would have understood the absence of the Minister at the World Maritime Day if he had attended the UNGA 2024″ an agitated stakeholder observed.

” Even if he had attended the global event in New York, he would still have had time to fly back to attend the World Maritime Day where he was supposed to address the participants who are the key industry stakeholders on the achievements of his ministry, his policy thrust and projection.

“After all, I learned that NIMASA DG who addressed the Atlantic Cooperation submit which the Minister should have ordinarily addressed if he had gone, had time to fly back to attend the World Maritime Day” an obviously unhappy stakeholder interjected.

Checks by our reporter revealed that the Minister had busy schedules during the weeks in July and August 2024 when he was actively involved in maritime activities to the delight of stakeholders.

However, the observant stakeholders claimed that they started to notice the gradual withdrawal of the minister from public functions at the beginning of September 2024 till the end of the month when his representatives held forth for him at all events.

“From the beginning of September up till the moment am talking with you, we haven’t seen the minister at the crucial public functions which raise our concerns” another industry operator volunteered.

A perusal of the minister’s X official page and the Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy, which normally give detailed coverage of his official activities, showed that the minister’s last public outing was on August 27th, 2024, when he attended the 2024 International Business Conference and Expo organized by the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

On August 24th, Oyetola attended the signing of the Agreement on Minimum Conditions of Service for Labour in Nigeria’s Shipping industry.

On July 13th, the minister attended Chief Olusegun Osoba’s 85th birthday and book launch.

On July 11th, he was at his Alma Mater, the University of Lagos, as the Keynote speaker during the institution’s Employment Clinic Education to Empowerment Transition Programme (EETP) career event tagged ” Blue Career Insights”

The Minister was also at the 17th Seminar for Judges organized by the Nigerian Shippers’Council on July 9th-July 11th, 2024 in Abuja.

On July 4th, Oyetola personally commissioned NPA’s High Tech Marine Crafts in Lagos.

On July 3rd, he hosted the Belgian Ambassador to Nigeria, Pieter Leenknegt, in his Office in Abuja.

The minister’s above itinerary clearly showed that he was a busy man who was always engaged in industry activities.

It was against the background of this realization that there are now heightened concerns about his less public appearance in recent times.

More worrisome, according to the concerned stakeholders, was the absence of the minister at the 79th edition of UNGA in New York.

He was at the 2023 edition of the global conference where he accompanied President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

He also addressed the 2023 Atlantic Cooperation submit chaired by the US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken.

His engagement with Dr Adesina, the President of the African Development Bank and Governor Rahman of Kwara state was generously captured on his X page.

As was the usual practice of the minister, his attendance at the 78th UNGA in 2023 was flamboyant and captured on his official X page, including the official X page of the ministry.

Even, his Special Assistant on Media, Ismail Omipidan, made a public spectacle of the minister’s departure to 2023 UNGA on his Facebook account page with copious pictures.

The absence of such a flamboyant display of the activities at the 79th UNGA in New York on the Minister’s X page raises the suspicion of discerning stakeholders that the minister did not attend the all-important 2024 UNGA which heightens their anxiety over the whereabout of the the former Osun state governor.

The suspicion and anxiety of industry operators were hinged on the fact that it was the Director General of the Nigerian Maritime and Administration Agency (NIMASA), Dr Dayo Mobereola, who addressed the 2024 Atlantic Cooperation submit held on the sideline of the 79th UNGA.

The same summit which was addressed by Oyetola last year.

The Atlantic Cooperation submit, a ministerial gathering, was curiously addressed by Mobereola, the head of an agency under the Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy.

“If he(Oyetola) was there, Mobereola wouldn’t have been the one to address that important submit” an operator said.

Also, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has directed through a memo signed by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation(SGF) that a lean size of Nigeria’s delegation should go to 2024 UNGA to reflect the mood of the nation.

As a result, government officials whose office have direct relevance to the topics of the global event were only allowed to go.

Consequently, the advance party who welcomed Vice President Kashim Shettima, the Federal government Head of Nigeria’s delegation to the global event, was on hand to receive the Vice president when his presidential plane touched down at John F Kennedy International Airport on Sunday, September 22nd, 2024.

The advance party included the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf Tuggar who coordinated the visit, the Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Dr. Bosun Tijani, Director General of the National International Technology Development Agency(NITDA) , Kashifu Inuwa as well as Nigerian Diplomats and UN officials.

Observers claimed that Oyetola should have been among the delegates due to the Atlantic Cooperation submit which he expected to participate which is relevant to the global event that could have warranted his attendance according to the Presidential order.

The attendance of Dr Tijani, the Minister of Communication and Inuwa, DG, NITDA was hinged on their participation in the SDG Media Zone meeting convened by the UN Department of Global Communications held on the sideline of the global conference.

The same criterion qualifies Oyetola to attend the conference because of the Atlantic Cooperation submit which he was supposed to have addressed.

However, stakeholders said they were worried that the minister was missing at such a critical global event.

However, Mohammed Tahir Zakari, the Assistant Director, Press and Public Relations, Federal Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy, acknowledged the absence of the minister at recent industry events, including the 79th edition of UNGA.

“Indeed it is true the minister has not been seen at public events in recent times but I am not in a position to tell you where he is.

” All I know is that the minister is hale and hearty. He is ok” the ministry’s official spokesman said.

But in another breath, Zakari claimed that Oyetola was on official assignment outside the country, but not at UNGA.

” He is on an official assignment outside the country. That is all that I can say.

”Anywhere the minister is, he is on official assignment” Zakari claimed.

When he was asked why the minister was not at UNGA and if his purported official assignment outside the country was more important than the global event in New York, Zakari retorted in a menacing voice ”My friend, I cannot answer all these questions you are asking me.

” I am not in a position to tell you more than what I have told you. “

He however acknowledged that the minister had been having quality representations at the public events he was supposed to attend which he believed was normal.

He however expressed gratitude to the stakeholders for their concerns over the whereabouts of the minister.

Beyond the levity the official spokesman of the ministry took the unknown whereabouts of the minister, some angry stakeholders said they are looking forward to the impending cabinet reshuffle by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu which will see non-performing ministers lose their job.

” Oyetola has not provided the expected quality leadership in the maritime industry since he assumed office a year ago.

” Can you imagine a minister who is supposed to provide quality leadership and direction to his field lieutenants now on AWOL and remains incommunicado, leaving the industry on autopilot.

”He also refused to avail us of his performance as a minister when he clocked one year in office in August”, the agitated industry operator said.

” If the assessment by the Special Adviser to the President on Policy Coordination and head of the Central Delivery Coordination Unit, Hadiza Bala Usman, on whose recommendations the cabinet reshuffle will be based, is anything to go by, Ministers like Oyetola should be among the causalities” another angry stakeholder blurted out his frustration at what he described as uninspiring leadership of Oyetola in the last one year in office.

It could be recalled that the presidency has confirmed the resolve of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to reshuffle his 47-member cabinet soonest.

According to the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, who made the planned cabinet known, the exercise would be evidence-based.

Besides, the presidency stated that Tinubu would be aided in his decision by public opinion that has been empirically extracted.

Onanuga, who was in the company of Senior Special Assistant to the President on Digital and New Media, O’tega Ogra, said there was no timeline as to when Tinubu would reshuffle his cabinet which was inaugurated in August 2023.

He disclosed that the president had indicated his plan to reshuffle his cabinet, but said he could not be categorical about when he will do it.

“I don’t have any timeline. The president has expressed his desire to reshuffle his cabinet and he will do it. I don’t know whether he’s going to do it before October 1st, but he will surely do it. So that’s what I will say. He has not given us any timeline he’ll do it, but he will do it. He has expressed his plan he wants to do it.”
Shedding more light on the planned cabinet shake-up, Ogra explained that the President would be guided by an empirical process, making reference to the performance indicator, which is being coordinated by the Special Adviser to the President on Policy Coordination and head of the Central Delivery Coordination Unit, Hadiza Bala Usman.

All the pictures are from the Minister’s attendance of 2023 UNGA

Related Topics:featured Where is Oyetola?

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Customs threatens to arrest, prosecute air travellers carrying currency above $10,000 threshold without declaration.

-as Nigeria tightens its anti- money laundering laws

Gloria Odion

The Nigeria customs service, in collaboration with other sister agencies, had engaged international airline operators in a sensitization exercise over the need to strengthen Nigeria’s anti- money laundering laws.

The sensitization programme, held at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, was meant to raise awareness on the importance of enforcing Nigeria’s currency declaration laws among inbound and outbound travellers.

The engemement addressed the role of airline personnel in ensuring compliance, especially in reminding passengers about declaration requirements through in-flight announcements, form distribution, and cooperation during customs checks.

Officials emphasised that any passenger carrying over the regulatory threshold, currently $10,000 or its equivalent, is required to make a declaration to the authorities.

Failure to comply, they warned, could result in seizure, investigation, and prosecution under Nigeria’s anti-money laundering laws.

Additional requirements discussed included the mandatory submission of electronic manifests (e-Manifests) before aircraft arrival, as well as complete passenger details such as names, countries of origin and destination, and flight numbers, stating that these records allow customs and security officers to conduct targeted risk assessments and enhance border surveillance operations.

Assistant Comptroller of Customs in charge of the Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism Unit, Salihu Mas’ud, led the engagement and expressed confidence in the outcomes.

According to him, the Service has already implemented several operational tools to support effective enforcement.

“What we have achieved so far is to be able to sensitise them. We’ve gone round to check all the points.

” We have dedicated search rooms for secondary searches. There are dedicated posts for currency declarations, and they are in place.

” Announcements are also being made on the Public Address System. We have also gotten the commitment of the airline operators to ensure that these announcements are also being made on board their flights,” he said.

He added, “We expect higher compliance, and it will strengthen our enforcement mechanism.

” It also ensures that defaulters and violators of currency declarations are detected promptly and forwarded for necessary investigation and prosecution.”

The sensitisation session highlighted the importance of inter-agency collaboration in securing Nigeria’s borders and preventing illicit financial flows.

With growing concerns over terrorism financing and smuggling of undeclared funds, the NCS said sustained partnerships with airline operators, airport authorities, and intelligence agencies will remain key to its success.

Headlines

Opeifa reaffirms commitment to infrastructural upgrade, staff welfare at Northern District headquarters of NRC in Zaria

Funso OLOJO

The Managing Director of the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC), Dr. Kayode Opeifa, has reaffirmed the commitment of the management of Nigerian Railway Corporation(NRC) to the upgrade of railway infrastructure and staff welfare at the Northern district headquarters of the corporation in Zaria.

Opeifa made the pledge while touring critical assets and infrastructure at the corporation’s district headquarters, Zaria in Kaduna state.

The visit was part of the Managing Director’s ongoing nationwide assessment tour of operational facilities and infrastructure under the Nigerian Railway Corporation.

During his time in Zaria, Dr. Opeifa met with district management and staff, inspected key installations, and reviewed ongoing and upcoming projects in line with the Renewed Hope Agenda of the Federal Government.

As part of his engagement, Dr. Opeifa met with the Staff,Nigerian Union of Railwaymen (NUR), the Senior Staff Association (SSA), Pilot Drivers on training and the Pensioners.

He reassured railway pensioners that issues concerning outstanding pensions are already being addressed, and urged them to remain calm, adding that concrete steps are being taken to resolve all concerns.

“We understand the importance of pension to our retired personnel, and I want to assure you that everything necessary is being done,” Dr. Opeifa stated.

“I will do all within my power to ensure that you receive what is rightfully yours.”

During the visit, Dr. Opeifa also toured key support facilities including the NRC Training School, the District Clinic, the Central Workshop, and the Permanent Ways Hotel.

He commended the efforts of the staff managing these facilities but emphasized the urgent need for upgrades and modernization to improve service delivery, staff welfare, and capacity building.

“To truly transform the Nigerian Railway system, we must also invest in our people, their health, their training, and the infrastructure that supports them,” he remarked.

In a show of gratitude and support, the Railway District Manager (RDM) of the Northern District Zaria , Engr. Adedeji Adewala Rasheed, thanked the Managing Director for the visit and reaffirmed the district’s commitment to the national vision.

“We are honoured by your presence, sir, and I assure you that the Northern District will always be ready to receive you at any time,” Engr. Rasheed stated.

“The Iron Men of this district stand firmly behind you and will give you their full support to ensure that your objectives in transforming the railway system are fully achieved.”

Dr. Opeifa emphasized the importance of the Northern District to the national railway network, particularly in enhancing connectivity between key cities, boosting trade and agricultural logistics, and supporting economic development across the northern region.

“We are committed to revitalizing the railway system across the country, and Zaria remains a critical hub in this transformation,” he added.

“Our focus is on efficiency, safety, and long-term sustainability, ensuring that the NRC meets the demands of a modern transport system.”

The Managing Director was warmly received by other senior officials, who briefed him on current operations, challenges, and areas of opportunity.

Dr. Opeifa assured the team of continued support and strategic interventions aimed at improving service delivery and expanding rail infrastructure.

This visit underscores the NRC’s dedication to closer engagement with its regional offices and stakeholders, reaffirming its mission to deliver reliable and world-class rail transport services for Nigeria.

Headlines

NIMASA reaffirms confidence in indigenous technical ability in ship building and repairs

Funso OLOJO

The Director General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Dr. Dayo Mobereola, has expressed confidence in the technological competence and abilities of indigenous engineers to carry out ship building and repairs locally.

Dr Mobereola made this assertion in Lagos during his visit to Nigerdock at Snake Island integrated Free Zone,where he had gone to inspect and assess the ongoing maintenance work on the DB Lagos, a special mission vessel used for maritime surveillance and national security operations.

The vessel plays a vital role in combating oil theft, smuggling, illegal immigration, and other maritime crimes within Nigeria’s waters.

Speaking during the inspection, Dr. Mobereola expressed satisfaction with the progress made and described the project as a clear demonstration of Nigeria’s capability to handle sophisticated ship repairs and construction.

“What I am seeing here today is a testimony to the fact that we have the ability not only to repair but also to build here in Nigeria,” he stated.

He further emphasized that the inspection aligns with the vision of the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola, who has prioritized the development of local capacity in shipbuilding and repairs.

“We at NIMASA are demonstrating our belief in this vision by maintaining our own vessels here,” Dr. Mobereola added.

The visit underscores NIMASA’s drive to promote indigenous maritime infrastructure, enhance national security, and advance sustainable growth in Nigeria’s maritime sector.