Alex Enumah in Abuja
President Bola Tinubu have been urged to fastrack the commencement of the University of Maritime Studies, Oron (UMSO), in order to enhance the potentials and growth of the Blue Economy sector.
Specifically, Tinubu was told that the country risks undermining its maritime development ambitions and losing critical opportunities in the sector owing to delays in the take-off of the University, over three years after the institution was established by an Act of the National Assembly and signed into law by former President Muhammadu Buhari on February 16, 2023.
The warning was given on Monday in Abuja, by the Oron Stakeholders Forum, which described the prolonged delay in activating the university as unacceptable, and against the socioeconomic development of the country.
Addressing journalists at a press conference, the stakeholders lamented that despite years of advocacy, legislative processes, stakeholder engagements and eventual presidential assent, the university still exists only “on paper,” with no substantive operational structures in place.
“A university that exists in law must also exist in reality,” the forum declared.
The group traced the institution’s origin to recommendations made in 2008 by the Niger Delta Development Technical Committee, which proposed the upgrade of the Maritime Academy of Nigeria, Oron into a full-fledged maritime university.
Former Commissioner for Economic Development, Akwa Ibom State, Prof. Emmanuel Onwioduokit, who spoke alongside Chairman of the Forum, Sir (Dr.) A. Ukwo Inuikim Obon and the Secretary, Engr Benedict Ukpong, maintained that the University of Maritime Studies, Oron is not merely a regional project but a national institution critical to Nigeria’s maritime future.
According to them, the university was conceived as a national centre for maritime excellence, a driver of Nigeria’s blue economy, a hub for maritime research and innovation, and a platform for youth employment and educational advancement.
Nearly four years down, the group claimed that expectations following the signing of the bill into law which included the appointment of principal officers, constitution of governing structures and commencement of academic activities was yet to materialised.
The Forum further alleged that despite engagements with the National Universities Commission (NUC), consultations with relevant ministries and mobilization efforts by stakeholders, the university remains dormant.
They queried the federal government over what they described as an unusually slow implementation process, asking why the appointment of a substantive Vice-Chancellor and other principal officers had not been concluded, and why the Governing Council was yet to be fully constituted.
The forum also questioned why public resources were still being directed to structures expected to transition into the new university framework.
“This issue goes beyond Oron,” the stakeholders said, just as they warned that every additional delay translates into lost educational opportunities, weakened public confidence and stalled regional economic development.
The Forum therefore called on the administration of President Tinubu to urgently intervene by ensuring the immediate operationalisation of the institution.
Specifically, the Forum urged the president to immediately appoint a Vice-Chancellor and other principal officers of the University; full constitution of the Governing Council; issuance of clear directives to relevant ministries and agencies; publication of a transparent implementation timeline; and an administrative review of all factors responsible for the delay.
“We are not demanding special treatment. We are asking that an existing federal law be fully implemented,” the forum stated.