NPA, Shippers Council, LASG, Others Unite To Clear Illegal Check Points Hindering Access To Ports
The Maritime regulatory agencies, the Lagos State Federal Government and other key stakeholders seem to have woken up from their slumber and are gearing up to combat all illegal check points set up by both non-uniform and uniform security personnel.
The stakeholders at a meeting organized by the Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Shippers’ Council, agreed to sanitize the port access roads especially at its concerns extortion by state and non- state actors.
Director, Consumer and Monitoring Affairs Department at Shipper Council, Chief Cajetan Agu, who represented the Executive Secretary, Emmanuel Jime said at no time should any trucker give bribe to any uniform or non- uniform personnel on Apapa Port roads.
Mr. Jamiu Anda Emmanuel, the representative of the NPA , Tin Can Island Port Manager, Mr. Jubril Buba said “it is true that they have a lot of these illegal toll gates and the presence of the non-state actors along the Ibafo-first gate-second gate corridors” but they have had to manually process the trucks before entry into the Tin Can Port.
Jamiu however put the the blame of the inefficiencies at the Ports on everybody operating along the corridor- government agencies and private operators. He also described the situation around the Port area as very ugly, and recommended that all non-state actors should be flushed out to bring about sanity.
Mr. Olayinka Olawale, an assistant Director at the Lagos State Ministry of Transportation in his contribution declared that the Abandoned Vehicles Committee has so many duties to perform, but that when people through traffic radios and other channels call for the clearing of traffic in and around Apapa, they usually swing into action.
He said that they have units that listen to complaints from the public and stressed that anybody who has his vehicle impounded should ask for tickets. He also asked people who are in the process of being exploited to tender their complaints at the appropriate unit of the agency, he encouraged the truckers to always have video evidence of the situation while being confronted or arrested by any government official. He also declared that they are working on modalities to ensure that every vehicle coming into Lagos is road worthy. He said that a lot of the transport owners should have their town towing trucks in order to avoid having their vehicles being towed away by government officials.
Also speaking at the event representative of the Council of Maritime Transport Union and Association, COMTUA, Comrade Godwin Ikeji noted that there was an initial optimism at the introduction of technology through the ETO call up system on the traffic situation.
Ikeji however said -call up system as embedded in the ETO application stipulated official price to process E,-call at N10, 000 but said unofficial price is N31, 000. He also alleged constant harassment by Lagos State Traffic Management Agency officials, excessive charges on offences committed by truckers as imposed by government officials and extortion by different security agencies as some of other challenges.
Also National Organising Secretary of COMTUA, Collin Ekene Dike said that the menace of area boys is complicating issues as they working together with the LASTMA officials would not allow you to touch your vehicle whenever your truck has any mechanical problems.
He added that the Lagos State Task Force on Abandoned Vehicle have constituted themselves into a law as they issue tickets and collect cash from truckers with reckless abandon.
Mr. Dike accused the Lagos State Task Force of usually impounding vehicles on trumped up charges and that they do not operate with known procedures and policies’, adding that the rates set for payment on the call-up system is made arbitrarily.
He said that each truck pays an average of Seventy to One Hundred Thousand Naira from Mile 2 to Tin Can Island gate before access is given into the Tin Can Port as demanded by the so-called camp boys (proxies) of the security agencies.
Director, Consumer and Monitoring Affairs Department at Shipper Council, Chief Cajetan Agu, who represented the Executive Secretary, Emmanuel Jime said at no time should any trucker give bribe to any uniform or non- uniform personnel on Apapa Port roads.
Mr. Jamiu Anda Emmanuel, the representative of the NPA , Tin Can Island Port Manager, Mr. Jubril Buba said “it is true that they have a lot of these illegal toll gates and the presence of the non-state actors along the Ibafo-first gate-second gate corridors” but they have had to manually process the trucks before entry into the Tin Can Port.
Jamiu however put the the blame of the inefficiencies at the Ports on everybody operating along the corridor- government agencies and private operators. He also described the situation around the Port area as very ugly, and recommended that all non-state actors should be flushed out to bring about sanity.
Mr. Olayinka Olawale, an assistant Director at the Lagos State Ministry of Transportation in his contribution declared that the Abandoned Vehicles Committee has so many duties to perform, but that when people through traffic radios and other channels call for the clearing of traffic in and around Apapa, they usually swing into action.
He said that they have units that listen to complaints from the public and stressed that anybody who has his vehicle impounded should ask for tickets. He also asked people who are in the process of being exploited to tender their complaints at the appropriate unit of the agency, he encouraged the truckers to always have video evidence of the situation while being confronted or arrested by any government official. He also declared that they are working on modalities to ensure that every vehicle coming into Lagos is road worthy. He said that a lot of the transport owners should have their town towing trucks in order to avoid having their vehicles being towed away by government officials.
Also speaking at the event representative of the Council of Maritime Transport Union and Association, COMTUA, Comrade Godwin Ikeji noted that there was an initial optimism at the introduction of technology through the ETO call up system on the traffic situation.
Ikeji however said -call up system as embedded in the ETO application stipulated official price to process E,-call at N10, 000 but said unofficial price is N31, 000. He also alleged constant harassment by Lagos State Traffic Management Agency officials, excessive charges on offences committed by truckers as imposed by government officials and extortion by different security agencies as some of other challenges.
Also National Organising Secretary of COMTUA, Collin Ekene Dike said that the menace of area boys is complicating issues as they working together with the LASTMA officials would not allow you to touch your vehicle whenever your truck has any mechanical problems.
He added that the Lagos State Task Force on Abandoned Vehicle have constituted themselves into a law as they issue tickets and collect cash from truckers with reckless abandon.
Mr. Dike accused the Lagos State Task Force of usually impounding vehicles on trumped up charges and that they do not operate with known procedures and policies’, adding that the rates set for payment on the call-up system is made arbitrarily.
He said that each truck pays an average of Seventy to One Hundred Thousand Naira from Mile 2 to Tin Can Island gate before access is given into the Tin Can Port as demanded by the so-called camp boys (proxies) of the security agencies.
