…Calls for openness in concession agreement review process
The Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Shippers’ Council, Barr. Hassan Bello has given reason why the Council was the first to speak against the Oil and Gas monopoly in some seaports across the country.
Speaking at the 2nd Transport Leadership Lecture held on Tuesday in Lagos by Kings Communications, Publishers of MMS Plus Newspaper said that the Council was opposed to the Oil and Gas monopoly as it was not known to concession agreement.
Bello harped on the need for the operators in the maritime industry to be sincere and abhor selfish interest and embrace national interest in dealing with the industry.
According to him,” Shippers’ Council will look at the government and tell them that you have no right to give concession to a RORO terminal and then in the middle of business, change the policy of importation, it is not right and we have told them so and we have reasons to reduce the guaranteed minimum tonnage of one terminal because the conditions for its operation were just not there.
“What we did was equilibrium, we need fair playing field for everybody and that was why the Shippers’ Council was the first to oppose the so called Oil and Gas monopoly in some ports and we said that Oil and Gas cargo is not known to concession agreement and that was why we called for an opening of this concession agreement.
“I am aware that concession agreement is being renegotiated but it can never be a close thing. The concession agreement is for Nigerians, we have to participate in that otherwise, it will still be the one sided thing we have seen. Where is the interest of cargo? Where is the interest of export? Nigerian ports are not configured for export. So, we have to operate an open society, we have to bring these things out, it is not going to be elitist thing.
“Now, when we want to open a modern truck transit park, the first people we contacted were the National Union of Road Transport Workers because they know where they park and we took them round the country and they will say, Oga this is a good place. Can you imagine if we have constructed all these parks and the drivers will say we are not going there? You have to consult. Consultation, synergy, inter-agency cooperation is extremely important in this industry.”
Speaking on the war risk zone slammed on Nigeria, the Executive Secretary accused the Nigerian journalists of giving false impression about the happenings in the industry to the even as he called for journalists to educated about piracy and incidences at sea or armed robbery and other misdemeanor which he said could not be the same as piracy.
“I know there is somebody in Lloyds who does nothing but to monitor coastlines in Nigeria about pirates and that is what will determine the war risk. Nigeria cargo owners are not consulted, the Nigerian authorities are not consulted, we don’t know the premium. Well, these surcharges are supposed to be even temporary and they disappear with the situation but we still have currency factor adjustment, we still have bunker adjustment as surcharges, whether the cost of bunker is up or down, it doesn’t matter to them.
“We have to come together and challenge this because coming to Nigeria is not just right with the cost, the cost is escalating and that is why the Nigerian Shippers’ Council has invited about six African countries, it has invited the Global Shippers’ Forum to come to Nigeria to look at this extra cost even the local shipping charges, we have to look at them and see the that we are competitors. The more cargo we have the better, these charges must be competitive. There is a scientific way of reaching agreement so that we will be competitive with other ports”, he argued.
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