After almost two weeks of action, truck operators at Lagos seaports yesterday finally agreed to suspend their strike, go back to work and comply with the directive of the Lagos State Government on restriction of movement of their trucks.
A compromise was eventually reached with the truckers after a closed door stakeholders meeting held at the office of the General Manager Western Port of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA); Chief Michael Ajayi.
After almost two weeks of action, truck operators at Lagos seaports yesterday finally agreed to suspend their strike, go back to work and comply with the directive of the Lagos State Government on restriction of movement of their trucks.
A compromise was eventually reached with the truckers after a closed door stakeholders meeting held at the office of the General Manager Western Port of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA); Chief Michael Ajayi.
Briefing press men at the end of the meeting, General Manager Public Affairs of NPA, Capt Iheanacho Ebubeogu however said that the agreement was inconclusive because the truckers have pleaded with government to consider adjusting the 9pm to 7 am time frame given for them to move.
As at the time of filing this report, the NPA and a committee comprising of other stakeholders were headed to Lagos Government's Secretariat in Ikeja, Lagos to inform Governor Akinwunmi Ambode that the truckers have agreed to call off their strike in obedience to the directive and to draw government to the operational challenges of the restriction.
Capt Ebubeogu said that the truckers have also demanded for a grace of one month in order for them to tidy up their house, sensitize their members and correct their faults as pointed out by the Lagos State Government, while at the same time expecting a positive response from the government on their plea for time adjustments.
According to the NPA spokesman, the 10-Day strike by the truckers was attracting ship demurrage of between US$35,000 to US$50,000 per day. He lamented that a lot of vessels have also been held up at bar, unable to come in and discharge cargo.
The NPA spokesman said "the truck owners associations have agreed to suspend the strike, they have however made government to realize that there are operational challenges within the time stipulated by the law"
"The time government wants them to start operating, they may get to the place of discharge and the receiver is not open, they are handling mechanical trucks that can breakdown and they can be in transit when the time elapses. All these exigencies should be considered when looking at their case"
"They have also said that everything the Lagos State Government observed as concerns that led to all these, a joint committee comprising of all the associations have been formed now and they will soon be inaugurated, that they need one month and what is expected of the truckers to do will be done, and what is expected of government, they will want government to help them" Ebubeogu explained.
At the end of the day, a resolution was signed by all the parties at the meeting. The meeting had in attendance the leaderships of the truck owners associations, President of Dockworkers Branch of Maritime Workers Union (MWUN) Comrade Adewale Adeyanju, President of ANLCA, Prince Olayiwola Shittu and founder of NAGAFF, Dr. Boniface Aniebonam.
Others are; Lagos Chambers of Commerce and Industries (LCCI) Nigerian Shippers Council, Nigeria Customs Service, Nigerian Police, Apapa Port Command and the Terminal Operators.
Capt Ebubeogu harped on the need for the Lagos State Government to review the contentious traffic rule as it affects the truckers a bit, in order to adjust the time of movement, considering the practical challenges in security. He stressed that the enforcement of the law must be practicable.
On the part of the truckers however, he lamented that rickety trucks still ply the roads, saying that many of the rickety trucks do not usually come from the port.
He assured that the NPA have started enforcing its minimum standard for trucks, but that it will take a while for it to mop-up all the rickety trucks.
"It will take not only NPA, other agencies also needs to work together to make it realizable by regulating the trucks even when they are not plying the port"
"We have started with the minimum standard for trucks, but they don't necessarily come from the port, what the truckers do sometimes is to take a healthy truck, come to the port, load and when they get out they transfer to a rickety one"
The NPA have however appealed to the terminal operators to consider the strike period as a force majeure and see what they can do to mitigate the effect on the importers and their clearing agents.
The NPA noted that the strike action was nobody's fault; hence, terminal operators should see what they can do for their customers.
Meanwhile, the NPA raised concerns that the production of food items and other wares for celebration of Christmas and New Year has been threatened a little bit by the strike.
The NPA spokesman noted that the goods held at the port are for manufacturers to use in producing. "You must also take note of the peculiarities of this season, this is the time corporate organizations are buying what they will use to give hampers, this is the time people are going to import rice for Christmas celebrations"
"From November 15th to January 15th is all end of year and Christmas celebrations in Nigeria and this is the peak of port business that is being threatened" he observed.
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