FRESH from the bloody battlefields of Rivers State, Mr. Dakuku Peterside should by now be savouring the cosy ambience of Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) where he reports, as the new Director-General. Away from the drumbeats of political wars, Peterside may have to find time to debrief himself of war rhetoric, remodel his mind and face the calm but intriguing life of dealing with civil servants. He also needs a closure to the battle for Government House, Port Harcourt, to focus on the new task at hand.

By the way, he who fights and runs away, lives to fight another day. He is young and agile and would still be here kicking in 2019. He did his best to clinch that beautiful prize of the governorship but fate, obviously, had other plans for him. That is life. Man proposes, God (and, sometimes, INEC) disposes. So, it is now a new life for the golden boy of Rivers politics. Instead of guns, firing bullets on all sides, he would henceforth be seeing files and more files flying around. He would be seeing memos and more memos. He would have to endure hours of listening to stories from stakeholders in the industry and his subordinates. He would be meddling into even private matters. It is a different ball game. And although I said Peterside is done with wars, NIMASA, appears to be another war zone, especially with the negative media it recently attracted. Still fresh on the mind is the footage of the former DG, Patrick Ziadeke Akpobolokemi being hurled into a waiting anti-graft bus, as he kicked, screaming “I would rather die here than go back with you!” It was a horrifying sight. But for all his resistance, he was not only taken away, he was jailed. The last time we saw him in court, he was on crutches, limping into the courtroom. I could not help to think “how are the mighty fallen”.

But back at NIMASA, not many people wept for Patrick. A few even openly did a jig at the man’s fall. A top management staff told me in a stiff tone how, before he got into trouble, she had warned him to be careful. She said she was worried about the endless complaints from both service providers and the staff. Files were piling up unattended to, as the man occupied himself with Abuja politics. He didn’t really have cause to listen to her. After all, he was in the good books of the former nation’s leader and there was the iron clad hope that the ruling party then would win  again. If that had happened, Patrick would most probably still have his job; life would go on as usual; those bellyaching would continue to cry and a few would go ahead with the party.

Then enter the change era and everyone knew Apkos (no pun intended but that’s how to shorten the former DG’s mouthful name) was in trouble. By this time, the agency had been identified, as the source of the funding for the negative adverts suffered by the All Progressives Congress (APC). Overnight, NIMASA found itself in the eye of the storm and in the centre of the anti-corruption cyclone. The EFCC practically relocated to the Apapa-based edifice, housing NIMASA and started their well-known job of hurtling suspects in that scary white bus of theirs. How the staff continued working under the circumstances beat me.

Enter the new minister of transport. As if the anti-graft agencies were not giving hell enough, the man of war of Rivers politics stormed the place, threatening to even close down the place. I understood his anger. Apart from the accusation that this was the livewire of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) dirty media campaign, the former DG was said to be hobnobbing with key enemies of the new minister like the mysterious Tompolo. By the way, the latter was said to be carrying out the same duties as NIMASA – ensuring the waterways are safe for vessels to carry on their jobs. So, it was a conflict of roles, sort of. What is more, the minister angrily noted that the agency wasn’t really necessary since the mother ministry could carry out their duties. I actually thought the place was up for scrapping, judging by the minister’s vehemence. But with the coming of the new boss, Dakuku Peterside, whose relationship with the minister is an open secret, I knew that the place wouldn’t be shut down. And honestly, it seems to me that the agency has just entered its golden era.

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First, Peterside is no Patrick. While the latter was yanked out of seeming obscurity and apparently became giddy with fame and fortune, the former is already used to the limelight as a governorship candidate. Patrick too, no matter his good intention, was hampered by the tough demand said to be placed on him to be making returns. And there was the last election to be funded. Peterside, on the other hand, is not carrying such baggage. At least, one hopes so. I don’t think he would be required to be making illegal remittance to “headquarters” like some funny DPO. He is also a product of the change era that stresses reticence, industry and propriety, as the cardinal principles of public servants. This is in contrast with the era of opulence, show-off and squandermania in which the last DG lived.

If Peterside abides by the tenets of the new ways, the agency would have enough money to begin to turn the place into a haven. Peterside would also win instant brownie points if he looks into the issue of staff welfare. For the teeming staff of the agency, this is one sore point in the entire misadventure of the past. Although they are pained by all the revelations of the mindboggling fraud, it is their welfare that, first and foremost, bothers them. Another top staff in the agency lamented to me recently. She  said: “We are really praying that the new DG would be used by God to change our stories. Take my case for example. My promotion has been delayed for years now. I know promotions have financial implications but this is covered in the budget. Many of us can’t understand why we won’t be promoted accordingly. The new DG would win many friends if he pointedly addresses the issue of placements and promotions. It is just this corruption that is making this place ineffective. If not, NIMASA is one of the best places to work and it would have been carrying out its duties well. The budget took care of everything.”

For Inusa Ahmed, a contractor I saw when I visited the agency, his concern was the rash treatment he endured in the last dispensation. He told me that NIMASA was fast turning into a hostile and tribal enclave with a certain Nigerian language almost becoming the lingua franca. “From the gates there,” he said, “to the top offices, you get the feeling you were not welcome. There were hostile security men everywhere, as if this was a cantonment. I was dribbled for months to get a simple payment done. I was then shocked when I read of all the monies said to have been carted away. I was repeatedly told that there was no money. I didn’t know that there was only money to be sent elsewhere.”

The new helmsman should be guided by the pitfalls of the past so as not to repeat them. And, please, while he is at it, can he kindly repaint the Apapa edifice to give it a face-lift? Currently, the entire building looks like an old museum. A sister agency like the Nigeria Ports Authority (NPA) is located at the Marina with only operational bases at the ports. NIMASA is mostly an administrative centre. The staffs require a conducive atmosphere to do the hard job of ensuring the nation gets the right revenue from maritime activities. Right now the smoke and dust filled Apapa office is hardly a place to breathe well, let alone think properly. If I were Peterside, that is where I probably would start from. Welcome to NIMASA, sir.