A former Director-General/CEO of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Mr. Temisan Omatseye, has said the country has let him down by allowing certain powerful persons to use the institutions of government to persecute him for standing on the side of truth.

Omatseye, who was the DG of NIMASA from July 2009 to December 2010, was removed from office in controversial circumstances during the administration of President Goodluck Jonathan.

Speaking in an interview with Ships and Ports Magazine, the former NIMASA DG said he took up the office to serve Nigeria but his payback was very bad.

Shortly after his removal from office in controversial circumstances in December 2010, Omatseye was arrested and prosecuted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

On May 20, 2016, he was sentenced to five years in prison by a Federal High Court sitting in Lagos after the presiding judge, Justice Rita Ofili-Ajumogobia convicted him on a 27-count charge bordering on alleged bid rigging and for allegedly awarding contract above his approval limit.

However, on May 11, 2017, the Court of Appeal Lagos Division quashed the conviction, discharged and acquitted Omatseye.

“Now, do I regret it? That’s a very tough question. This is because one has learned that Nigeria as a country has failed to appreciate its people; people that come to serve and serve properly and you end up rubbishing them. I went there very nationalistic, believing in what I wanted to do, what I wanted to achieve.

“I went there to serve Nigeria but my payback was very bad. I never went there to enrich myself, which I never did in any case. I just went there to achieve something. I wanted to go there and leave a legacy but others still do not believe that’s the way Nigeria should be. What outlives you is your legacy, not your money.

“So, I’ll not lie, I do regret it. I felt this country disappointed me. They let me down. I’ve lost 10 good years of my life because of the cases I have. I’ve been on suspension. They’ve not lifted it, which I have been chasing for the last four years,” he said.

Disclosing that he was embittered with the whole incident, he said, “They kept me in this mess. I went into NIMASA at 45, and I am now 57. So, it is natural that somebody would be bitter. I am annoyed but I thank God for the grace of God upon my life.

“Having gone through all these, sincerely speaking, it has increased my faith in my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, and my God. And God kept on telling me whenever anger comes; he kept on reminding me that, have I not been there for you during your court case?

“Upon all these, I will say that it has been tough. Tough when you considered your days before coming into government that you were comfortable; you were doing very well but the expectation of people is for you to go in there and steal which I never envisaged to engage in.

“But now that your life is almost a mess, you are now at the mercy of friends and family and someone is almost a beggar on the street. That is very unfortunate. That is very painful because it creates a lot of loss of confidence from your own immediate family. I believe if I had achieved my dream in NIMASA, coming out, people would have appreciated me prompting invitation from international communities beckoning on me to come and work with them.”

Recounting his experience during the trial, he said, “Upon all these, you still sent me to jail for 35 days at Ikoyi prison for a crime I did not commit. In all the charges they charged against me, they never said I stole a kobo. All they said was that I approved above my threshold.

“They didn’t say the contract was not done. They didn’t say money was shared. They only said I approved! You can imagine the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) taking me to court for approval. Is it a crime to approve? You now jailed me for an offense that does not even exist. I am 57 years old now. I was in my prime when they carried me and locked me up. And now, I’m getting close to 60,” he lamented.