UPDATED: Nigerian Ports Authority Managing Director, Hadiza Bala Usman, Suspended

President Muhammadu Buhari, has suspended the Managing Director of the Nigerian Ports Authority, Hadiza Bala-Usman.

This was contained in a statement signed by Garba Shehu, presidential spokesman, on Thursday night.

According to Shehu, the suspension followed a recommendation by Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, to set up an administrative panel of inquiry to investigate the management of the NPA.

Buhari also approved the appointment of Mohammed Koko to take over while “the investigation is carried out”.

The panel is to be headed by the director of maritime services in the ministry while the deputy director of legal in the same ministry will serve as secretary.

Other members of the panel will be appointed by the minister.

Bala-Usman was first appointed as the managing director of the NPA in 2016 and was reappointed in January this year for another five years.

On Wednesday, the suspended NPA boss led her organisation to sign a Memorandum of Understanding with the National Bureau of Statistics and the Nigerian Ports Authority to commence the production of statistical information and data analytics on port related activities..