MAN Oron Rector Harps on Competence of Academic Staff

ABIOLA Seun |

The Rector of the Maritime Academy of Nigeria, MAN, Oron, Akwa Ibom State, Commodore Emmanuel Effedua, has said that only qualified teachers are employed for the subjects they are qualified to teach.

Reacting to a comment credited to the Nigerian Association of Master Mariners, Effedua said that the group does not have the right information as to what is going on in the Academy.

He disclosed that the Academy had in the last two years, made moves to engage some of these master mariners to join the academic staff of the institution but they have refused.

He said that the teachers who they claim is teaching nautical science does not teach that course adding that they take the cadets on meteorology.

Effedua also said that the personnel in question has a Doctorate Degree and has been teaching that course in the last 18 years.

He stated: “If they cannot help us to solve our problem, why compound it by making comments that are not true,” he queried.

“We wrote them, no response; we wrote for the second time and yet they refused to respond. In the whole of 2018, they refused to respond to us. Part of the letter reads, “This letter is meant to kindly remind you that we have still not received any recommendation till date.

“We are particularly concerned that the new academic session would soon commence with the request still outstanding, while the Academy is determined to change the quality of training in the institution for the better.

“The management is conscious of the critical role of competent and experienced lecturers and instructors in the achievement of quality training of the cadets and is hereby re-presenting the request for your kind and urgent intervention”.

On the audit exercise of the maritime institution, Effedua said that the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, NIMASA, has done an audit of the institution and the Academy passed the audit.

Other international institutions, according to Effedua, have done an audit on the Academy, a development that can compare the academy to any international maritime training institutions.

Speaking further to journalists in his office in Oron, Effedua said that besides being up to date with its audit, the certificates issued by the school are verified by these foreign institutions.