After several failed efforts to get truck drivers who are currently on strike since last week, to go back, the Nigerian Ports Authority says it has realized that the truckers might be deliberately trying to sabotage Nigerian ports.
The NPA had intervened into the strike which began last week Tuesday after the Lagos State Government asked truck drivers to restrict their movements to between 9pm and 7am.
After several failed efforts to get truck drivers who are currently on strike since last week, to go back, the Nigerian Ports Authority says it has realized that the truckers might be deliberately trying to sabotage Nigerian ports.
The NPA had intervened into the strike which began last week Tuesday after the Lagos State Government asked truck drivers to restrict their movements to between 9pm and 7am.
Speaking on our sister platform; Shipping Position Live on Star Fm 101.5 in Lagos yesterday, General Manager, Western Ports of the NPA, Chief Michael Ajayi alleged that the leadership of the truck drivers unions are unconcerned about investors losing their money to the strike action.
Chief Ajayi said that several meetings have been held between the government and the truckers, and that several appeals and way outs have been considered, but that the truckers have refused to shift grounds.
At the moment, the NPA top man lamented that there is a fish vessel that arrived at the ENL Terminal in Lagos, but that the refrigerated truck drivers have refused to lift the cargo even though refrigerated trucks were exempted from the movement restrictions ordered by the government.
"Presently there is a fishing vessel that is berthed at ENL, it is a perishable item and fish trucks have been excluded by the Lagos State Government, in order words they are free to move, but every appeal to these leaders to allow the vessel to discharge for their trucks to come in and take away the cargo fell on deaf ears"
"Imagine a Nigerian that has gone to the bank to borrow money to invest, and now sees his investment going down the drain, how would he feel? And yet these leaders do not even have the human feelings to begin to understand that at a particular stage of the strike, there is need for a review" Ajayi said.
Yesterday’s declaration coincided with the expected arrival at Lagos ports of 24 ships laden with foods, general cargo, petroleum products and other goods are expected to arrive at the Lagos ports.
The Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) gave the figure in its daily publication of the outcome of daily berthing meetings, made available to newsmen in Lagos.
According to the document, the ports are expecting ships will arrive with containers, general cargo and truck heads.
It said other ships would sail in with buckwheat, bulk sugar, rice and palm oil.
The remaining ships are expected to arrive at the ports with base oil and petrol.
About 14 ships had earlier arrived at the Lagos ports with petroleum products, general cargo, frozen fish, bulk salt and rice, waiting to berth.
In view of the fact that ships are coming into the ports, despite the strike , the General Manager in charge of Western ports warned that the NPA cannot continue to tolerate the strike action because the nation is losing huge revenue to the face-off. He added that currently, the ports are at a standstill, and every appeal to the leaders of the truck drivers to call of the strike has fell on deaf ears.
Shipping Position Daily recalls that, the truck drivers have raised security concern about their trucks having to drive at night, which according to them is not safe.
Chief Ajayi said that the NPA agrees that the truckers have a genuine case by raising security concerns about their operating at night, but he said that the Commissioner of Police in Lagos and his counterpart in the NPA have assured them of security within and outside the port.
Already, he said that the situation might degenerate beyond what it is presently, because the dockworkers inside the ports are uncomfortable with the situation.
Chief Ajayi added that the level of hygiene inside the port is equally bad right now, because some of the drivers that had queued with their trucks up to go out were already messing up the port.
"The situation is very bad right now because we cannot discharge cargo, we cannot take delivery, and the economic implication is huge on Nigeria. 80% of the cargoes coming to sub-Saharan Africa is destined for Nigeria and 60% of it is coming to Lagos, and when a tiny minority decides to impose their own view on 160million Nigerians, this is not acceptable" he said.
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