The minister of transport, Rotimi Amaechi, and the minister of state for petroleum, Ibeh Kachikwu, on Monday disagreed on the establishment of the Nigerian Maritime University, proposed for Okerenkoko, Delta State.
Speaking alongside other ministers at a government town meeting in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, Amaechi defended the decision of the Federal Government to scrap the project, while Kachikwu in response said he saw nothing wrong with proceeding with the project.
Speaking at the forum, Amaechi said with an initial down payment of N13 billion, the administration of Goodluck Jonathan had paid too much to acquire a site for the university.
On January 19, while addressing the Senate committee on maritime, Amaechi announced the scrapping of the project, which was to be financed by the Nigerian Maritime and Safety Administration Agency, a parastatal under the ministry of transport.
He cited insecurity in the area, and said the project was a “misplacement of priority” because there are other transport institutes in the country which cold adequately fulfil the purpose of the proposed maritime university.
But in a rebuttal to Amaechi’s position, Kachikwu disagreed with Amaechi, saying he was in support of the project.
“First, let me say on Okerenkoko University, I disagree with the Minister of Transport,” Kachikwu said.
“Any facility that is located in the South-South we should work close to developing it.
“It’s not in my position to determine whether land was valued at N3 billion or N10 billion. The appropriate institution which is at the cost system will determine that. That has nothing to do with development of infrastructure. And as far as I know, so much has already gone into the university.
“If he (Amaechi) does not want it in Maritime, I will take it in petroleum,” he said.
On the renewed insurgency in the Niger Delta region, Kachikwu repeated his call for dialogue with Niger Delta Avengers which has vowed to ground Nigeria’s oil industry, having carried out audacious attacks on oil and gas installations.
He said the crisis could not be resolved through counter military attacks by Nigeria’s Armed Forces, but through dialogue.
