Pius Nsabe
A wave of frustration and heartfelt emotion has swept across the community of Nigeria’s seafaring cadets as over 170 Philippines-trained students under the Nigerian Seafarers Development Programme (NSDP) publicly appealed to the Director-General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Dr. Dayo Mobereola, to urgently approve their long-awaited Certificate of Competency (CoC) and the payment that comes with it.
In an open letter released earlier this week, and made available to The Journal Nigeria, the cadets expressed deep disappointment over what they described as a “prolonged and painful delay” in the processing of their CoC—an essential requirement for progressing in their maritime careers.
“Our journey as NSDP cadets has been marked by endurance, sacrifice, and resilience,” the letter reads. “But today, we are confronted with yet another burden: the prolonged delay in the approval of our CoC payment.”
Despite completing their required academic and seatime training, the cadets allege they have faced administrative stagnation, with no clear communication or resolution from the agency. They also claim that counterparts trained in other countries under the same scheme have already received support, further deepening the sense of abandonment among the Philippines cohort.
“This disparity in treatment is not only demoralizing—it is killing us,” the cadets wrote. “We are sons of this great country, yearning not for charity but for a chance to stand tall as proud ambassadors of Nigeria on the global maritime stage.”
One of the affected seafarers, who preferred anonymity, told The Journal Nigeria that between schooling in the Philippines for the four-year programme and now, it has been a period of about 15 years, with the last five years spent waiting for the CoC.
Reacting to a query by The Journal on the issue, a senior NIMASA official reassured the cadets that their concerns are being addressed. “The Director-General is fully committed to ensuring that the Philippines cadets proceed with their CoC,” the official stated. “The Head of NSDP is working diligently to facilitate the deployment of the 170 cadets to the Philippines as soon as possible.”
According to the agency, efforts are being prioritized to resolve the matter, and deployment plans are reportedly underway.
The Nigerian Seafarers Development Programme was designed in 2008 to bridge the gap in the country’s pool of qualified maritime professionals by sponsoring young Nigerians for world-class maritime education abroad. Since its inception, hundreds of cadets have benefited from the initiative, but some, like the Philippines-trained group, have encountered obstacles along the way.
As the nation awaits action from NIMASA, the cadets’ open letter stands as both a cry for justice and a call for leadership. “Let history remember you as the father who heard the cry of his sons,” they implored the DG.
For now, the cadets continue to wait—not just for payments, but for a sign that their nation still stands with them.
