The President, Shippers’ Association of Lagos State (SALS), Rev. Jonathan Nicol has said that following the precedent set by the Seaport Terminal Operators (STOAN) and the Association of Shipping Line Agencies (ASLA), this year may witness a lot of the operators in the maritime industry going to court to enforce one right or the other.
Nicol who was speaking in an interview with newsmen in Lagos on Tuesday also said that because of the culture in Africa where when one takes someone to court, one may likely become lifetime enemies, most people may not want to go to court so as to sustain business relationships.
He disclosed that his association in the last one year had succeeded in raising awareness of members as well as that of other industry stakeholders leading to stakeholders awakening to realities in the sector.
According to him,” now what that means is that the shipping and terminal operators opened the doors, they went to court and people are now aware. You can see, our maritime lawyers should go and dust their wigs because they will have more jobs to do”.
“People will go to court, it is their right to go and seek redress in the court. So, most of the stakeholders’ meetings, seminars and workshops were information that brought about this present state of affairs”.
“So, 2015 will see a lot of operators in the maritime sector going to court and that will help a lot and I believe also that all the other stakeholders will not go to court because in the African culture, when you go to court, you become a lifetime enemies and it is not too good for business”.
The SALS boss while calling for attitudinal change especially in the maritime sector also called for reduction of prices which would in turn give way to equitable price regime contending that people should not be paid for service for services they did not render.
“We see no reason why a shipper will pay when there is public holidays, when nobody have access to the ports. So, all that should be given as his right and it cost them nothing”.
“The platforms where they keep the containers is not complaining. If the platform is complaining that you must us rent, I don’t think they will survive it. So, why should they charge us on public holidays? All that will think they will have a change of minds”.
“We want them also to go back to their home offices and re-negotiate their contracts. As far as Nigeria is concerned, that the Shippers’ Council has made a suggestion of seven days, we are looking at twenty-one days. Infact, at the moment, as I talk, I have twenty-one days free which means it is possible for shipping companies to give you twenty-one days free demurrage. If they have the kind of containers that we have in Nigeria in their countries, they won’t come to Nigeria”.
“And in their countries, the port system is regulated, so they work within laws”, he said.
