Buhari’s Election: Uncertainties Over NIMASA, NPA, Customs, NIWA CEOs Jobs

President -Elect; General Muhammadu Buhari

There is palpable fear among top echelons of the various maritime sector agencies over what may be aptly be explained as fear of the unknown.

Worst hit by this fear are: Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), the Nigerian Ports Authourity (NPA) and the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), and National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA) whose chief executives are in one way or the other linked to the political calculations that preceded the last Presidential elections which was won by General Muhammadu Buhari of the opposition All Progressives Congress (APC).

Most pathetic is the position of the DG of NIMASA; Mr Patrick Akpobolokemi, who engaged the APC in a ‘battle’ preparatory to the elections.

Akpobolokemi who is just about four months into his second term of four years is already a target by the hawks in the APC.

Apart from having sympathy for the ruling PDP, he also played a very dominant role in the build up to the elections. He was alleged to have used funds from NIMASA to finance series of hate campaigns against the candidate of the APC.

Shipping Position Daily recalls that, the NIMASA boss had also in retaliation threatened to sue the party, although the threat was never carried out.  The agency under the watch of Akpobolokemi has also been accused of alleged serial misapplication of funds.


There is also no doubt that the Managing Director of NPA; Malam Habib Abdulahi may be in his last few months as the CEO of the agency. Reason, he is not of the APC.

Although his employment in NPA in 2003 is by virtue of being a member of the ‘Kwankwanso political dynasty’ in Kano State, he fell out with the Kano state Governor; Alhaji Rabiu Kwankwanso when the later defected to the APC.

The incumbent MD of NPA was one of the few that came with Alhaji Aminu Dabo (from Kano) when he was appointed as the managing director of NPA in 2003. Habib Abdulahi was appointed as a General Manager, with this, his rise to the top began.

Insider sources however told Shipping Position Daily that when his godfather (Kwankwanso) defected to APC, he (Habib) decided to stay put in the PDP, to create inroad for President Goodluck Jonathan in Kano state and also checkmate the Governor.

Already, insiders informed this newspaper, that the post of MD of NPA may still go to someone from the Kano/Jigawa states axis, and that a replacement was being sort for him.


The Customs Comptroller General; Alhaji Diko Abdulahi Inde has been allegedly linked to both political camps.


While some alleged that, being from Katsina State, he had sympathy for the ambition of General Muhammadu Buhari, some said that he was a strong party to the underground works for the second term ambition of President Goodluck Jonathan.

But, whichever way it goes, the days of Dikko as the Customs CG are numbered.

The case of the CEO of NIWA is even too obvious, having been a serving minister and later CEO of NIWA, and being the Matriarch of the Ciroma family, her political allegiance is not in doubt.

Again, insiders revealed that, because of the need to be definitive on the in-coming regime’s economic blue print and the attendant new fiscal policies, there is need to make sweeping changes in many of the revenue-yielding agencies, especially in the maritime and allied sectors.  http://shippingposition.com.ng/article/buhari%E2%80%99s-election-uncertainties-over-nimasa-npa-customs-niwa-ceos-jobs