Board Chairman, Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) retired Maj. Gen Jonathan Garba has assured that the board will put in place policies that will revive the dilapidated Nigerian Maritime Resource and Development Centre (NMRDC).
Garba who made the promise on Thursday when he led members of the board on a tour of the resource centre, expressed disappointment at the level of infrastructural decay at the facility even as he blamed past administration of the agency for the inefficiencies of the centre.
He however assured that the board will work to tackle all the identified challenges to bring the resource centre back on track again as according to him, “we are going to give everything a frontal attack”.
“This facility is to represent Nigeria in the face of other countries. We have found ourselves bow our heads in shame because this is not the intention of our forerunner who established this facility that are non-functioning.
“We are going to put up policies that will back this facility. The management of NIMASA intends to do something about it,” he said.
He also promised that the board would ensure staff welfare and make promotion of staff an annual exercise and ensure it is based on fairness.
Earlier, Coordinator of the Research Centre, George Inyang highlighted some of the challenges of the centre to include dilapidation of existing facilities and proliferation of abandoned project, unreliable power and water supply among others.
He said the agency had not maintained cordial relationship with its host community at Kirikiri.