Following criticisms in some quarters regarding the effectiveness of the Eto call up system lately, the Nigerian Ports Authority has reassured of its commitment as an organization to strengthen the system because it has saved the port users a lot.
The General Manager, Corporate and Strategic Communications, NPA, Mr. Ikechukwu Onyemekara who stated this in an interview with Primetime Reporters in Lagos Wednesday said that if there were challenges, the Nigerian Ports Authority was ever committed to address them for the benefit of trade facilitation.
Insisting that the Eto call up system was a well thought out, innovative platform that NPA introduced as a solution to a problem that had plagued the logistics system in Nigeria which was known to all Nigerian, Onyemekara maintained that all over the world, port operations were automated, arguing that the essence was to make the system more efficient and reduce human interface.
He said, “Overtime, we have seen that the moment you remove human interface, for the benefit of those who have been enjoying the outcome of that human interface, there’s always a resistance and so, the stage of it’s a scam, it’s this, it’s that, they are all reactions to the removal of human interface in some of these operations.
“If you even check the Nigerian Ports Authority, most of our operations are being automated, which is the way to go. So now, anybody who is patriotic would welcome any system that is automated. For somebody who appreciates the introduction of the Eto system, they way he will criticize what he sees is different. As an Authority, the Management of the Nigerian Ports Authority has consistently been responding to challenges that we experience along the line, which is part of the work.
“We saw a time when there was a challenge of truckers trying to beat the system by going to get their own name plates, an arrest was made, we switched into action and arrested a whole lot of fake name plates promoters. So, what I am saying in effect is that if you are constructive, if you notice something that you think is not working well, if you are patriotic, pass the message to the appropriate authorities. We will investigate it and then, of course, if it is something that is, we are here to facilitate trade and it is in facilitation of trade that we make revenue.
“So, why would we be part of a system that we need to make to work for the whole Nigerians to enjoy? So, if you notice that it is not working, we will swing into action and deal with it.”
Asked why the Authority allowed the activities of third party agents whose stock in trade is to buy up Eto call up tickets, hoard them and resell them at a very exorbitant amount thereby aggravating the cost of transporting goods from the ports to the hinterlands, he said, “For every system, there are also people that are consistently working against the system.
“When that issue came up, the Nigerian Ports Authority also engaged TTP and I know that there are several measures that have come up. Part of the way they employed to beat the system is the fake name plates. You get a name plate, you book and in the course of this thing, you change the name plate. When we noticed that they are existing, there were measures to stop those things. So, as we are going on with this process, anything that they discover that will make it impossible for the system to work, we deal with the matter.
“What I am saying in effect is that let’s appreciate the fact that it’s a system that was put in place to address a matter which it did address and not to come and condemn the system. Do you want us to go back to the old system? It’s not possible! So, all we need to do as partners in the industry, just like anywhere in the world, if there are things you perceived as challenges, there are ways to address those challenges because you want those things to be handled but not come to say it’s this, it’s that.
“Consistently, Management has had its eyes on the Eto system, in fact, there is an Eto Committee, they meet constantly to review what is happening. That is how serious we have taken the system because they meet every week. What are they doing there? It is to discuss the challenges that they are seeing and address them as they come for the system to work.
“So, we need to tell people, you cannot continue to work against that kind of system. As you are thinking of what best to do, some people are deliberately sabotaging your efforts because without human interface, they don’t benefit from it. So, the moment you eliminate that, everybody begins to cry foul.
“But we are committed as an organization to strengthen the Eto system because we know that it has saved us a lot. If there are challenges in the system, the Nigerian Ports Authority is ever committed to address the challenges for the benefit of trade facilitation.”
Speaking on why the petroleum tanker drivers were not captured on the Eto call up system, Onyemekara said, “I know that they have had series of meetings too. Well, because it’s a specialized cargo they are dealing with. I know they have had meetings on how they can prepare a particular package for them because you cannot equate them with the dry cargo carriers because of the peculiar nature of the cargo that they carry, we need to give them some special considerations because the issue of energy is very key in the country. So, I am sure we have been engaging them on the best way to handle their own cargo.”
Photo: Mr. Ikechukwu Onyemekara, General Manager, Corporate and Strategic Communications, NPA.
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