Even though it has promised to pay up all outstanding wages and welfare packages it was owing tally clerks and onboard security men before December 15th 2015, the Nigerian Ports Authority have said it would no longer take responsibility for further payments to the workers.
The NPA made this clear at a meeting in Lagos yesterday with the Maritime Workers Union, the National Association of Stevedoring Companies, supervised by the Federal Ministry of Transport and also witnessed by the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) and the Nigerian Shippers Council.
Addressing press men after the meeting, Managing Director of NPA, Mallam Habeeb Abdullahi stated that the authority is already processing the outstanding payments to the union and that the debts will be cleared off before December 15 when the subsisting contracts of the stevedoring companies will be terminated.
Habeeb who was represented by his Executive Director, Marine and Operations, Eng. David Omonibeke said that the agency will no longer engage tally clerks and onboard security men and that the terminal operators or any other government agency that will be responsible for the payments will have to be determined before then.
However, the National Association of Stevedoring Companies have also warned that at the expiration of their contracts with NPA, there must not be a vacuum in the operations of tally clerks and onboard security men because this is an integral part of port operations.
President of the Association, Mr. Bolaji Sunmola warned that all concerned parties must agree in order to spell out who will be responsible for further payments to the port workers. He said that millions of jobs are currently at stake.
But the NPA boss; Abdullahi said that yesterday's meeting was called because already, the Federal Government is worried about the port industry and it cannot continue to lose revenues as a result of shutting down of ports and threats by the Maritime Workers Union who are employees of Stevedoring companies.
"In the concessioned ports we have terminal operators engaging stevedoring services, but there are some engaged by the NPA, our concerns is that payment for them is derived from operations, the contract they have will be expiring by December 15th and government is making effort to ensure that before the expiration of that contract, the right organization or terminal operators that will responsible for such payments is clearly stated"
"As a competent port authority we are keeping to our words, the bills are being prepared, the port authority is doing all within its reach to ensure that before that Dec 15th, most of the outstanding bills are paid"
In his opening remarks at the meeting, Director of Maritime Services at the Ministry of Transport who was Chairman of the occasion, Mr. Sani Galadanchi said the meeting is at the instance of the ministry, the NPA and the National Association of Stevedoring companies in order to forestall crisis with the dockworkers union.
He said there is need to agree on the government agency to be responsible for the payment of the services by the dockworkers and the source were payment for the service will be generated.
"Government have concluded plans to make some changes in the status of the services of tally clerks and the role to be played by NPA and NIMASA and the terminal operators" he said
The National Association of Stevedoring Companies have however insisted that payments to her tally clerks and onboard security men is inbuilt in the dues enjoyed by NPA.
President of the association, Bolaji Sunmola told journalists that the payment for these services are tariffed under a particular heading. He said that the NPA has responsibilities of investigating these headings and compel whoever is collecting the money to make the payments.
"We are looking forward to the payments before 15th of December, till date NPA has paid 40% of what is being owed us. Strike is an unnessesary tool, we don't want to use it to coerce, but it's because we are pushed to the wall that is why you see us going on strike, some of these workers have not been paid for over nine months"
"There must not be a gap, if not we will still come back to the issues of what is happening in the ports and the President will not really like to know that thousands of people's employment will be at stake" he warned.
Also speaking, Executive Director Maritime Safety and Cabotage Services of NIMASA, Barrister Calistus Nwabueze told reporters that the meeting was adjourned till another date. He said the stakeholders will be meeting again at another scheduled date.
He said that NIMASA's position on the payment of tally clerks and onboard security men is predicated on section 27 subsection 1a, b,c,d of the NIMASA Act.
"We came into this matter because the Act mandates us to intervene in issues of disputes relating to welfare, wages and all concerning dockworkers in any port in Nigeria"
"Where we found a way forward, it becomes incumbent on all the parties involved to adhere strictly to it, where they fail, we will wield the big stick" he warned.
However, a member of the stevedoring association, Hon Alba Kaloma insisted that onboard security and tally clerks must remain at the ports.
He said that it is left to the agencies to seat down and identify where these funds are, either with the terminal operators or any government agency.
"If the terminal operators are charging for these services and it is not being rendered then it should be recovered, if it is not charged by anybody then the whole system will be reviewed and it will be a win-win situation"
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