Segun Onigbese Ope (Financial and Logistics Expert)
Just like we have in every facet of Nigeria, one of the ways to fight corruption is to deploy technology to reduce human to human interface, look into how people are being employed and make examples when people flout the rules, but in Nigeria, we love to reward bad behaviors with good things.
So, basically what the government needs to do to stem corruption in the port is to deploy technology that will reduce the bottlenecks that are attached to physical operations.
Abdullahi Inuwa (Logistics Expert)
The government has to show commitment by ensuring that shipping lines are not allowed to operate without functional holding bays for receiving back their empty containers, to mandate all the government agencies inside the port to have a single window mode of operation, to digitalize all form of payment e.g e-payment and e-call up; this will corruption will be reduced.
Engr Matthew Alalade (Ex-President Merchant Navy)
The tide of corruption in all facets of government is so high, as the rate of poverty increases, despite the fact that Nigeria is termed a poverty state. I think the solution will be that everyone must put Nigeria first, love this country, and change people’s orientation from my own first before this country. It must start from the executives, legislators and the judiciary.
Capt Tajudeen Alao
Let there be enforcement, the ease of doing business, let transparency remove face to face interaction, let people go online to do their things, remove human interference and corruption will be reduced.
Babatunde Mukaila (National Secretary ANLCA)
What we need is full automation of the port operational system; if there is full automation of the port operational system, this will drastically reduce corruption the port system.
Yussuf Babalola (Maritime journalist)
To stem corruption at the nation’s seaports, the government should automate the system. Physical or manual operations breed corruption and also circumvent the system. No matter the number of seminars or workshops, without automation, the system will remain the same
John Oforbike
If government really wants to fight corruption in the system, they know what to do. In the interim, they should transfer everyone who have stayed above three years in the port and constitute a very strong taskforce comprising of the manufacturing sector, haulage sector, freight forwarding sector as members with a clear mandate on what to do, you will see wonders. The sectors mentioned above are the victims of corruptions in the port system, they know where the pains are. Government should stop using corrupt people to fight corruption, it won’t work.
Tony Iju Nwabunike (National President of ANLCA)
Our port processes have been largely manual, analogue, archaic and not in sync with modern realities. From access control to cargo examination and submission of manifests by ship masters, we have remained complacent with a system on slow mode by default. It is only recently that the Nigerian Ports Authority stepped up efforts for an electronic call up system of trucks into the ports and Nigeria Customs Service commenced move for procurement of modern scanners.
Accessing the ports and physical examination instead of using scanners have been lucrative areas of corruption and inefficiencies in our port system. One finds it difficult to understand why we allowed such unproductive methods to thrive for many years.
