The Authority also commended the immediate past Managing Director, Chief George Moghalu, for handing over to Adetola, who is most senior General Manager, in line with the extant rules.
Acting General Manager (Corporate Affairs) of the Authority, Jibril Darda’u, made the clarification in a statement on the issue.
A group, Maritime Pressure Group, was reported to had recently berated the performance of Moghalu whose four years tenure came to an end on 29 September, 2023 and for handing over to Adetola in acting capacity.
Darda’u said there was no rift among the General Managers over who should head the Authority in acting capacity pending when the Federal Government will appoint a substantive Managing Director.
He said the assertion by the group on the four year administration of Chief George Moghalu is untrue.
He described the assertion as sponsored blackmail, considering the landmark achievements during Moghalu’s tenure, noting that they are verifiable to the general public.
“It is a known fact that Chief George Moghalu, being a seasoned politician and a technocrat, that did not hinder his official performance in NIWA.
“Rather, he has infused his experience, culture and innovation of the private sector leading to the success recorded in NIWA so far.
“And it must be corrected that Chief George Moghalu, being a law-abiding citizen, handed over the leadership of NIWA to the most senior General Manager on the exact date his tenure ended during working hours, not in the night as purported.
“We will continue to reiterate that Chief George Moghalu tried his best in the uplifting and development of the inland waterways sector. He left NIWA better than he met it,” he said.
The acting Managing Director, Surveyor Olawale James Adetola, is a Master’s Degree holder, a professional surveyor and a registered member of SURCOM.
He joined NIWA in 1992 and was promoted to the post of a General Manager in 2018.
Adetola was the pioneer General Manager, Business Development and later, Head Procurement Department, among other positions in the Authority.
Next in hierarchy to Adetola is Fibersima Tamunokubie, GM, Area Offices Coordination, who joined NIWA in 2004 and became a General Manager in 2018.
Other General Managers are Engineer Fidelis Aghahi, (GM Port Services), was promoted to the post of GM in 2019, while Mallam Girei Yusuf, GM, Finance, joined NIWA in 2004.
Also in the acting General Manager hierarchy are Nasiru Bayankare (Legal); Dakio Horsfal (Marine); Japhet Maisaje (Internal Audit); Fidelis Ejike (Engineering); and Mallam Abdullahi Dabai (Human Resources).
Others include Mallam Muazu Dan Azumi (Research, Planning and Environment); Mallam Ibrahim Isyaku Sade (Procurement); Jibril Darda’u (Corporate Affairs); and Surveyor Henry Adimoha (Survey).
Some staff, who spoke on condition anonymity, said the atmosphere in NIWA is devoid of any hitch or tension since the former Managing Director handed over to Surveyor Olawale Adetola in acting capacity on Friday, 29 September, 2023.
“How can anybody say that the acting Managing Director is a junior General Manager and also a placeholder for the former MD?
“Mr Adetola is the most senior among the General Managers in NIWA presently.
“According to NIWA nominal roll, Mr Adetola joined the Authority in 1992 and became GM in 2018.
“He has spent over 30 years in NIWA and, by all standards, he is the most qualified for the position of the acting Managing Director.
“The former MD, Chief George Moghalu, who handed over to Mr Adetola, spent four years in NIWA.
“He knows the most senior among the General Managers. People are just creating problems where there are none.
“The acting MD has barely spent a week. Moreover, he is an easy-going man, accommodating and he is loved by most staff,” one of staff said.
They noted that the staff were going about their normal activities without any complaint since the acting MD mounted the saddle of leadership in NIWA.
“I am not aware of any complain or tension in NIWA over the appointment of the acting Managing Director.
“As one of the union leaders, whoever is going about complaining, he or she is doing it for personal gains not in the interest of the workers,” said another staff on condition of anonymity.
The staff called on the Federal Government, especially Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Chief Adegboyega Oyetola, to ignore the alleged complaints by some purported aggrieved workers who they described as “faceless individuals”
