The Managing Director of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) Engr Omar Suleiman has charged the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport (CILT) to ensure that it cleans up the maritime sector which according to him, has in recent times been bedeviled with quacks.
Suleiman gave this charge in his acceptance speech after he was confirmed with a fellowship award by the CILT in an elaborate “Investiture, Book Launch and Industry Leadership Lecture” in Lagos yesterday.
The Managing Director of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) Engr Omar Suleiman has charged the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport (CILT) to ensure that it cleans up the maritime sector which according to him, has in recent times been bedeviled with quacks.
Suleiman gave this charge in his acceptance speech after he was confirmed with a fellowship award by the CILT in an elaborate “Investiture, Book Launch and Industry Leadership Lecture” in Lagos yesterday.
The NPA boss tasked the institute not to rest on its oars as it still has a long way to go in getting rid of unqualified persons trooping into the maritime sector on daily basis and carrying out sharp practices.
Suleiman said that “CILT still has a long way to go in Nigeria because whether we like it or not, it is a very robust and forthright international industry, a lot of unqualified persons are entering into the industry and are causing a lot of sharp practices".
“It is left for us to wake up and that is why I am challenging myself and other members that it is not enough to receive the chartered membership and go to sleep, we have to educate people around us, do as much as possible to see that the institute grows and our membership so that we can take up the professional nature of this institute”, he advised.
While delivering an industry leadership lecture at the award ceremony and book launch, titled “achieving a user- friendly port under a concession regime”, Engr Suleiman identified challenges currently facing the port system, he said that cargo throughput at the ports has increased without recourse to the logistics of moving the cargoes from the ports.
According to him, the port is growing without creating the logistics to take care of the growth, he said that this has made the NPA to rehabilitate the rail system in Apapa and connecting the one at the Tin Can Island Port, but that the project has been stalled because NPA alone cannot connect to the national rail without the Nigerian Railway Corporation in order to start moving containers from the port.
Suleiman also acknowledged that unless the deep sea ports project of the NPA which are; Ibaka deep seaport, Lekki deep seaport and Olokola deep seaport comes on stream to be able to attract vessels that can carry more than 10,000TEU’s, Nigeria will continue to have high shipping rates. “Unless we do that, our shipping cost will continue to be high” he stated.
Speaking earlier, the President of CILT, Professor Michael Filani had congratulated the NPA boss, even as he pointed out that fellowship of the institute is only given to whom it is due.
He had explained that in the history of the institute, this was the first time that an individual will be conferred with the award of fellowship of the institute, even as he reiterated that Engr Suleiman is being honoured because of his outstanding administrative and management competence.
Professor Filani assured the NPA boss that, “we are very proud of you and we publicly acknowledge your support for the growth of CILT Nigeria. We believe that you will continue to make useful contributions to the development of the logistics and transport industry and the growth of CILT, Nigeria” he said.
Discussion about this post