Nigeria now has a maritime academy to be proud of- Master mariners
The Nigerian Association of Master Mariners (NAMM) has given professional endorsement of the Maritime Academy of Nigeria, Oron Akwa Ibom.
President of the Association, Captain Tajudeen Alao, said in an interview that upon its visit to the Academy on Monday, and professionally reviewing what it met on ground, the body of master mariners with a collective of over100 years’ experience, concluded that the institution now merits a global standard status.
His words: “We went on a working visit to assess the situation, infrastructure and facilities on ground, compared with what was there earlier in the year that we visited.
“We found out that all the simulators are now fully installed and in use for training the cadets; the Ocular vision simulator, the Multipurpose simulator, the Full Mission Bridge and the Engine room simulators. Then, the underwater escape pool is still being constructed.
“There is a 60-room hostel accommodation for people going to the Academy for short course, so that they are saved the burden of staying outside the Academy. There are many newly-constructed roads.
“We interacted with some of the HND students and saw just how knowledgeable they are. They all have personal laptops, courtesy of the Academy. The instructors are simply great, and with assess to modern training facilities. What more but to build on this and ensure it is sustained?”
On the working visit to the Academy with Captain Alao were former president of the master mariners’ association, Captain Adewale Ishola, Rear Admiral Godwill Ombo(Rtd.), and the administrative secretary of the NAMM Secretariat, Mr. Niyi Olalekan.
Speaking further, Capt. Alao said that as a master mariner, he had officially visited at least nine maritime academies around the world including the US Merchant Marine, Long Island, the academy in Ghana, Norway, and Singapore, and would confidently declare that the nation’s maritime academy has been built to required standard.
He expressed appreciation to the Management of the Academy for naming arterial roads after master mariners including himself, Captain Emmanuel Iheanacho, and Captain Adamu Biu, as a mark of honour to mariners who have expressed interest in ensuring quality training for the cadets.
Speaking also, Rector of the Academy, Commodore Duja Effedua(Rtd.), said the master mariners visit the academy periodically as their own contribution, doing the basic quality checks and offering professional evaluation to further enhance training of the cadets in the institutions.
“The master mariners have been doing this on their discretion since I became the Rector. They have simply expressed genuine commitment to ensure we are on course in our training. And I must say that this has been a huge contribution coming from the masters of the discipline,” Effedua said.
