The Nigerian Shippers Council was awarded as the best maritime agency of the year 2015 by Kings Communication Limited, publishers of MMS Plus weekly newspaper, in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Transportation.
The award was received by Executive Secretary of the Council, Barrister Hassan Bello, who was represented by Executive Director, Corporate Planning and Research; Mr. Gordian Ihuoma.
Speaking after receiving the award, Mr. Ihuoma stated that the award was coming as a result of the leadership style of Barr. Hassan Bello.
“This award is coming as a result of the unique leadership qualities of the Executive Secretary, Barr. Hassan Bello. He leads and we follow and this has led us to do so well. He is alos very passionate about the maritime industry and this has caused the Council to reach heights” he said.
Mr. Ihuoma also stated that the first thing he would do when he returned to the Council is to give a copy of the lecture to the Executive Secretary because the Council hasn’t only received accolades but there is still so much to achieve.
The ceremony also featured an Inaugural Transport Leadership Lecture with the theme: “Driving Change with Leadership in Transport” and the former Vice Chancellor of University of Benin, Professor David Adamu Baike was the Guest Speaker.
Prof. Baike noted that the nation’s transport industry needed drastic changes and leadership with drive to bring about the positive changes.
“If you travel to countries abroad, you will find that their welfare is around transportation and you could move from one point to another easily but that is not the case in Nigeria. We need leadership that will guarantee a transport sector that will make Nigerians enjoy going out rather than being afraid of going out”, Prof. Baike posited.
Also speaking at the event, the CEO, Kings Communication Limited, Mr. Kingsley Anaroke stated thjat the aim of the summit wasn’t only to acknowledge the outstanding performance of the Nigerian Shippers Council in 2015, but to address the teething problems in the transport sector through the leadership lecture.
Mr. Anaroke said, “We are talking about not having a transport policy. We are also complaining about the absence of an effective transport system as it should be. If you pick them sectorally, the maritime sector for instance is plagued by several issues such as the lack of manpower, lack of vessels, rail system, the aviation sector, pipeline, etc are facing challenges”
By Kenneth Jukpor
