Steve Agbota
The Minister of Transportation, Rt Hon Rotimi Amaechi on Thursday morning said he was not aware of Dr Dakuku Peterside’s sack and the appointment of Dr Bashir Jamoh as his replacement as the Director-General of Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA).
Jamoh is the current NIMASA’s Executive Director, Finance, and Administration.
Reports had it yesterday evening that President Muhammadu Buhari had appointed Jamoh to replace Dakuku, whose tenure expires March 10 next week. The report was confirmed by some ministry sources.
But Amaechi, who spoke on a live TV programme, said that as the Minister of Transport, he ought to know if Dakuku was removed or not by the president.
Acknowledging that Dakuku’s tenure will soon expire, the minister argued that even if it is not going to be renewed, the idea of bringing in another person to replace him should wait until the expiration of the tenure.
According to him, “I am not aware of that. The president has the right to remove him or replace him if he will not renew his appointment. But if his appointment is not going to be renewed, it should wait until it expires.”
Amaechi said he spoke to Dakuku on Wednesday evening when he was having a board meeting.
“But if it is a sack as you said, if am still the minister of transport, I am the one who will inform him of his removal,” he stated.