Since 1999, May 29 has become a public holiday in Nigeria. It is the nation’s democracy day, and in a few days Nigeria will roll out the drums again, to celebrate the 2015 democracy day; the 16th in a row.
Because the maritime sector is one of the strongest pillars upon which the nation’s economy rests, it is natural to expect that the advent of democracy will impact on the sector, and vice versa.
No doubt, democracy has ushered-in new things and engendered reforms in the sector; it has also come with pains.
Since 1999, May 29 has become a public holiday in Nigeria. It is the nation’s democracy day, and in a few days Nigeria will roll out the drums again, to celebrate the 2015 democracy day; the 16th in a row.
Because the maritime sector is one of the strongest pillars upon which the nation’s economy rests, it is natural to expect that the advent of democracy will impact on the sector, and vice versa.
No doubt, democracy has ushered-in new things and engendered reforms in the sector; it has also come with pains.
So, to appraise the nation’s maritime sector since May 29, 1999 will invariably necessitate looking at issues like: port concession and associated issues, Customs reforms, maritime safety and security as well as Nigeria’s status within the comity of maritime nations.
Since 1999, the maritime industry holds the unenviable records of being the only sector with the highest turn- over of ministers and chief executives of government agencies. Since 1999, the sector has had: Dr Mrs Kema Chikwe, Chief Ojo Maduekwe, Dr Abiye Sekibo, Alhaji Habib Aliyu, Prince Okechukwu Emeka, Alhaji Isa Bio, Alhaji Yusuf Suleiman and the incumbent Senator Idris Umar (who appear to have found a way out of the frequent schism and change of guards in the transport ministry.
The frequent change of guard also affects both the Nigerian Ports Authourity and Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency and of course; the Nigeria Customs Service; all of which have had at least, six chief executives since 1999. The duo of incumbent Customs and NIMASA chief executives obviously also appear to be in the good books of those who appointed them or those who lobbied for them to be appointed.
Undoubtedly, the greatest benefit of 16 years of democratic rule is port concession which has transformed the nation’s seaports into a more sane and more profitable venture, unlike what obtained in the past, when the port system was a haven for all manners of illegalities including: discharge of un-manifested cargoes, under payment of revenues that are due to the government, cargo vandalism and theft, uncontrolled human and vehicular traffic, and a host of other vices.
All that is gone, the ports are now better and more profitably operated, even though with complaints from freight forwarders about high charges. But, port users will agree that port operations in 2014 is a lot better than that of pre-1999. Cargo throughput has soared, turn-around time for vessels has reduced, cargo dwell-time has also improved, while ships of bigger draughts now call at our ports with maximum TEUs.
This is however not to say that there are no challenges in the ports any longer. But the challenges are basically operational and they predate the May 29, 1999 return to democratic rule.
The greatest failure of democratic dispensation is most visible in the prevailing state of the nation’s waterways and territorial waters where sea robbers and pirates have resurfaced. Sadly, piracy has put Nigeria on the world map of notoriety, next to Somalia.
Even though, piracy and sea robbery abated at a point, its resurgence and rise call for concern. Maritime safety and security has not enjoyed the benefits of democratic dispensation. Issues like compliance with the ISPS Code, safety of oil laden tankers, attacks on inland waters, etc have been more pronounced than they were pre-1999.
Suffice it to state here that the past 16 years of the new democratic experience are not without achievements. But, we will like to stress here that a lot more is wrong with the way democracy has turned the chief executives to absentee heads of their various agencies. They are hardly on ground to attend to issues as they unfold in their respective agencies. They are always in Abuja; either answering questions from their supervisory ministers or as guests of the various committees of both chambers of the National Assembly. Certainly, democracy has made the cost of running government agencies to soar.
A lot of valuable man-hour is lost as the CEOs shuttle between the commercial capital city of Lagos and political capital; Abuja. The impact of their absence is better felt when serious operational and administrative issues are kept for their arrival.
That is why we acknowledge the comparison that some people have drawn between the military and democracy. Those who frown at the valuable time that is usually lost when CEOs answer the calls of the various committees at both the Senate and the House of Reps and their supervisory minister indeed have a point. The military has no time for the time – consuming ritual called ‘oversight functions’.
Democracy gave the nation’s maritime sector the Cabotage Act, and the Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarding of Nigeria (CRFFN). Sadly, the intendment of the promoters of the two laws appears to have been defeated as the two interventionist laws have not aided the growth of the sector.
Certainly, democracy has brought freedom, enhanced port efficiency, made the agencies more people-friendly; it has also made stakeholders bolder to comment on issues and offer workable suggestions to the government.
There is massive investment in the nation’s maritime sector and a lot more players have come in as well.
Arguably, the most painful aspect of it all is that the some Bills that would have enhanced the performance of the sector and its players are still left unattended to by the National Assembly. Top among these are: Port and Harbour Bill and the Chartered Institute of Shipping of Nigeria Bill.
The Cabotage Act has been roundly condemned as failing to meet the objectives for which it was passed. To the extent that the nation’s indigenous ship owners have remained poorer than they were prior to the enactment of Cabotage and to the extent that there are now more unemployed seafarers now than before, can one safely say that democracy has impacted positively on their lives.
For as long as the nation still has an army of unemployable seafarers, and for as long as the CRFFN remains the way it is, and maritime security is still the way it is, can one also safely say that Nigerian maritime sector is better-off under democracy? The answer is still yes.
As we all eagerly await the new government and its change mantra, one can only hope that our fortunes would be enhanced.
Our faith in democracy remains unwavering, even in the face of seeming unending challenges, and we state unequivocally that the Nigerian maritime sector has fared better under the democratic dispensation.
Discussion about this post