Uncertainty over status of 776 cadets as Buhari declines assent to Maritime University Bill

Abiola Seun

Uncertainty has beclouded the status of undergraduates presently at the Nigerian Maritime University (NMU), Okerenkoko, Delta, State as President Muhammadu Buhari withholds assent to the bill to establish the institution.

Recall that the University was granted approval by the National Universities Commission (NUC) to commence undergraduate degree programmes effective from the 2017/2018 academic session.

PMB had in May, 2019 declined assent to a bill seeking the establishment of the university. The decision was conveyed to the 8th senate.

Buhari stated the excessive proposed source of funding for the institution as the major reason for his decline.

“I am declining my assent to the bill because the funding provisions are grossly excessive and will disrupt the operation of a number of government agencies and institutions,” the letter reads.

However, investigation over the weekend showed that the institution set up in 2013 has over 776 students who are in dark over what becomes of their academic status.

It was gathered that 300 undergraduates wrote the first and second semester exams in 2018 while the University pre-screened 476 new students in January and have commenced academic activities for the 2018/2019 session.

Of this number, the faculty of Engineering had the highest number of pre-screened students comprising 280 students.

The NUC approved that academic activities commence in three faculties namely; Transport, Engineering and Environmental Management.

The Faculty of Transport has four departments, namely: Nautical Science, Transport Logistics Management, Marine Economics and Finance, and Port Management.

The Faculty of Engineering has five departments – Marine Engineering, Civil Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering and Petroleum and Gas Engineering, and the Faculty of Environmental Management has four departments: Environmental Management and Pollution, Meteorology and Climate Change, Fisheries and Aquaculture, and Marine Geology.

In November 2017, President Muhammadu Buhari approved an increase in the take-off grant allocated to the University from the N2bn earlier announced to N5bn.

This sum was included in the 2018 budget presented to the National Assembly in November 2017. Similarly, an additional N1B was approved by the President to support essential infrastructure works and staff recruitment in the University in November 2017.