A senior lecturer at the Abia State University, Uturu, Professor Collins Chijioke, has called for the siting of four free trade seaports in the South East and dredging and upgrading of Onisha River to boost the economy of the zone.
Chijioke stated this when he delivered the 73rd inaugural lecture of the university on the topic: “Maritime industry in Nigeria: Integrating the legal issues” at the university’s auditorium.
He said the seaports should be sited at Obuaku and Azumimi in Abia State as well as Oseakwa and Asamoto Rivers in Anambra and Imo states respectively.
“The seaports can handle over 30 percent of maritime traffic in the country while the Onisha aspect will allow smaller vessels from Lagos and Port Harcourt,” he noted.
Earlier, the vice chancellor of the university and the chairman of the occasion, Prof Onyemachi Ogbulu, described Chijioke as a great asset to the school.
Similarly, the director, research and publication of the university, Prof Victor Nwugo, thanked Ogbulu for sustaining the inaugural lecture series and Chijioke for “delivering a knowledge-filled lecture.”
