A chieftain of the National Association of Road Transport Owners (NARTO), Alhaji Abdullahi Inuwa Mohammed has called for synergy between the officials of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) and the Lagos Taskforce on the decongestion of Apapa traffic so as to consolidate on the gains achieved so far by the disbanded Presidential task team.
Speaking in an interview with our correspondent in Lagos yesterday, Alhaji Mohammed stated that this could be achieved if the NPA management shares vital information with the Lagos State team in such a manner that it would aid them in the discharge of their duty to the port stakeholders.
According to him,” Now that NPA is on the verge of deploying electronic call up system, even as they have started with the manual call up, they should be furnishing the team with information on the trucks okayed to access the port at any given time. If there is synergy in this regard, I think it will go a long way. The NPA should furnish the team with the schedule of empty containers being received by the terminal operators at any given time.”
While noting that traffic in Apapa was in two categories, Mohammed who is the former Lagos State Vice Chairman, Dry Cargo Section of NARTO observed that the Presidential Task Team was able to regulate the traffic to some point but when it comes to port area, it falls exclusively under the Nigerian Ports Authority.
“Now, if the Lagos State Government can still manage traffic from Oshodi to Tincan and from the Lagos island axis, then Western Avenue and there is no stationed vehicle along the route such that there is free flow of traffic for other road user, I believe they will go a long way in sustaining the control of the traffic.
“They should focus on ensuring free movement of vehicles on all roads leading to the ports so that there should be no stationed trucks along the road. They should ensure that all trucks go to the designated parks along the port corridor to park. But when it comes to the port area, it is the duty of NPA to ensure that they regulate the movement of trucks. The shipping companies and terminal operators also have to play their roles for the success of the task team”, he further said.
He however pointed out that the stakeholders welcomed the news of the takeover of the management of the Apapa traffic by the Lagos State Government as according to him, “we know that if there is synergy, they will continue from where the Presidential Task Team stopped. We believe that for them to do better, synergy is much more paramount.”
“We have had the sign ever before now because the Vice Chairman of the Presidential Task Team has been emphasizing that they have fulfilled their mission waiting for the Lagos State Government to take over any time they are ready. So, it seems that the Lagos State Government is now ready hence the takeover”, he added.
On whether the Presidential task team fulfilled their mandate within the period they held sway, Mohammed who is also the Public Relations Officer, Council of Maritime Truck Unions and Association (COMTUA) said, “In my opinion, I will say that they delivered. This is so because before now, if you are coming to the port from Ikorodu road, you cannot access Apapa with your vehicle because you have to park your vehicle or disembark from the bus to mount Okada in order to reach Apapa same day. But now, from Oworonsoki, you can board a bus straight to Apapa and you will arrive Apapa within a short period of time. It is thanks to the job done by the presidential task team, it is part of their success story. The same thing is applicable to those accessing Apapa through Oshodi.
“You also know that it is the Presidential task team together with the NPA and the Nigerian Shippers’ Council that made it possible for the Lillypond truck park to be put to good use and tried in synergy with the government agencies to administer the manual call up system that the truckers are using to gain access to the port. It was part of what they have succeeded in doing and you know that if not for the fact that the presidential task team was fully on ground then, the ongoing road construction from Apapa to Mile 2 through Tincan would not have reached to this level. Maybe, by now, they contractor would have abandoned the road half way.
“But despite the road construction, the Presidential task team happened to manage the situation in such a way that the port did not shut down, activities was ongoing and the road construction is also ongoing. In all, sanity, law and order were restored by the disbanded team.”
Photo: NARTO chieftain, Alhaji Abdullahi Inuwa Mohammed.
Send your news, press releases/articles to augustinenwadinamuo@yahoo.com. Also, follow us on Twitter @ptreporters and on Facebook on facebook.com/primetimereporters or call the editor on 07030661526, 08053908817.
