Hard times await quacks in the mining industry. Prof. Winton Bell-Gam dropped the bomb-shell during a press interview with newsmen.
He said the Council of Nigerian Mining Engineers and Geoscientist are doing everything possible to put a standard on non professionals especially, unregistered members, saying they will be flushed out of the industry.
Prof. Bell-Gam handed down the warning at the Uptonville oil and Gas Institute in Port Harcourt, venue of COMEG Workshop on “Development of Professional Programmes” on Tuesday, March 28, 2012, adding that the institute is not making curriculum for university as tertiary institutions have experts to do so, but that COMEG will develop a curriculum to suit its professional standard.
In his speech, Chief Chambers O. Oyibo (FNMGS) chairman COMEG in a presentation on the vision and mission of the institute said the body aims to establish and prescribe minimum standard of education for geoscientist students and hoped that geosciences should be taught in secondary schools to catch the young ones at the early age.
Chief Oyibo stated that COMEG is aimed to provide employment for members and to workout curriculum with the Nigerian University Commission. Other areas include the code of conduct to regulate and control the mining industry, registration of engineers and geoscientist with the qualification.
He said those who refused to register with the body will not be able to teach in the University, or win any contract in respect to Geology hoping that the workshop will position COMEG to its greater height.
Earlier, Prof. Winton I. Bell-Gam, President of the Uptonville Institute told journalists that COMEG was an Initiative of the former President Olusegun Obasanjo when he was creating innovative impact, which formed the best of its kind as a mono-technique where young stars will be trained in Petroleum Institute. Prof. Bell-Gam has earlier stated that those who did not register will not be licenced to practice which means that you work like a quack which no profession will like to be associated with because they will be acting in breach of the set of up of the regulatory body, as directed by the Ministry of Mines and steel Development.
The workshop addressed course content of the institute as it centered on development of professional programmes which will be developed at the end of day. ###
By Mene Gbarabe/Pius Dukor
