For allegedly extorting money from motorists on the ever busy Lagos ports access roads, the Lagos Ports Access Roads Decongestion Committee (LAPARC) has come under a scant criticism of the Lagos state government which has reportedly also formally written to the Federal Government to with draw the special task force.
For allegedly extorting money from motorists on the ever busy Lagos ports access roads, the Lagos Ports Access Roads Decongestion Committee (LAPARC) has come under a scant criticism of the Lagos state government which has reportedly also formally written to the Federal Government to with draw the special task force.
The LAPARC was created a few years ago as an interventionist body to ease the then-chaotic traffic situation on the two approaches to Lagos ports; that is from the Apapa –Osodi expressway axis and the Ijora axis. It drew its members from the Navy, Police, Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corp and Lagos State Traffic Management Authority [LASTMA].
For allegedly collecting N7000 to allow container truck drivers to park at the second gate of the Tin Can Island port and frustrating recent efforts of both the state government and the federal government to free Apapa of vehicular traffic the Lagos state government was said to have called for the removal of the agency.
National President, Association of Nigeria Licensed Customs Agents [ANLCA], Prince Olayiwola Shittu disclosed this last weekend at the 5th Anniversary/Transport Development Symposium and Excellence Awards put together by TransQuest Media Concepts.
Prince Shittu who also chaired the occasion, said that the Governor of Lagos State, Babatunde Fashola has requested the port reform committee headed by Professor Sylvester Monye to inform the Federal Government to scrap the traffic enforcement body.
‘’Let me us this opportunity to speak about the security agency that involves LASTMA and others collecting N7,000 at the second gate of Tin Can Island Port; the group known as LAPARC and their assignment has been subsumed into a chest pool of corruption. It is also a confirmation that money exchanges hands to the point that the Lagos State Government ( that is the governor himself) has requested the presidential committee on port reform to call on the Federal Government to scrap LAPARC because it has outlive its usefulness.
According to the ANLCA president, the Presidential committee on port reform is to meet in respect of the clarion call made by the Lagos State Governor.
Shittu who is also a member of the committee also added that; “the issue of the governor’s request on the scrapping of this agency is the major issue we are going to address and that will tell you the challenges we are facing in the maritime industry or transport sector.’’
According to him, “the federal government does not have very serious transport policies and they are all disjoined. But the bottom line is that we are stakeholders, we cannot stop talking at any opportunity given because the government is in Abuja while the operation is down here at the port and the minister does not know what is happening at the ports all the time’’.
Earlier in his welcome address at the event, the Editor- in- Chief,TransQuest Magazine Mr. Felix Kumuyi gave kudos to the state and federal government for the successful clearing of trucks from the port access roads.
‘’Kudos must however be given to the Lagos State Government which in collaboration with the Federal government succeeded in clearing the Apapa- Oshodi expressway of trucks which hitherto made use of the expressway as parking lots while awaiting loading and other articulated vehicles that have been hindering the flow of traffic to and from the ports and we hope this will be a continuous exercise”, Kumuyi added.
Discussion about this post