How third party illegalities overshadow NPA’s e-call-up gains

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3 years ago

Bello-Koko

The Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) on February 28, 2021 launched the electronic call up system for trucks aiming to gain access to the ports. In this report, TOLA ADENUBI examines why the initiative, which restored sanity to the port environment in its first two weeks of implementation, is now bedevilled by so many issues. Excerpts

The launch of the port electronic call-up system otherwise known as Eto immediately relieved the ports access road of a traffic snarl that was threatening to make a mess of the gains of the 2006 port reform of the Federal Government.

With the launch of the Eto system, sanity returned to the ports access roads as Messrs Truck Transit Park Limited (TTP), the firm saddled with the responsibility of implementing the e-call-up system, introduced a combination of information technology and physical infrastructure from its base at the Lilly-pond terminal in Ijora to drive traffic management in and out of Nigeria’s busiest ports of Apapa and Tin-Can island in Lagos.

However, despite the efforts of the TTP, activities at some satellite parks launched to complement the Eto system seem to be drawing back the gains of the e-call-up traffic management system, investigations have revealed.

Two weeks after the launch of the Eto system by the NPA, the agency published a list of 17 satellite truck parks that were expected to aid the seamless operation of the e-call-up system. The satellite parks, scattered all over Lagos, were expected to deepen the impact of Eto and make the movement of trucks more seamless. However, instead of deepening the implementation of Eto, findings have revealed that most of the extortion claims and delays suffered by users of the e-call-up system have mostly emanated from the satellite parks.

Poorly equipped parks

According to findings, not all the satellite truck parks have the necessary telecommunication gadgets that enable seamless communication between the mother park, which is the Lillypond park (where TTP operates from) and the 17 other trailer parks.

When the Nigerian Tribune visited the Lilly-pond park recently, it was observed that at the Control and Monitoring Room of the TTP, most of the CCTV connected screens were not viewing live footage of what was happening in many of these satellite parks.

When asked why some of the CCTV screens were not viewing live activities of happenings at these satellite parks, a worker of the TTP explained that it could be due to poor network issues from the satellite parks.

Without uninterrupted live footage of what is happening at these satellite parks, monitoring activities at these parks becomes extremely difficult, if not impossible.

Speaking to the Nigerian Tribune, a trucker who uses some of the satellite parks explained that most of the parks deliberately turn off their network connection due to illegal happenings at these satellite parks.

According to the truck operator who identified himself as Alhaji Mojeed Aliu, “When the NPA approved these satellite parks to work under the Eto project, conditions were given for their registration under the e-call-up system.

“One of such conditions is to be well equipped with telecommunication gadgets that would allow for proper integration and monitoring of activities in these parks on a 24/7 basis.

“Other equipment expected at the parks include; Closed Circuit Television (CCTV), electronic access barrier (access gate), inverters for constant power supply, reliable internet connection (preferably Local Area Network, LAN) and bollards.

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“How many of these satellite parks that lack all these equipment lobbied to get registered under the NPA Eto system remain unknown to us. Many illegal activities happen at these satellite parks. When you hear truckers complaining that payment for Eto has exceeded the N10,000 that the NPA told us will be the minimum payment to access the e-call-up system, it is because truckers are being extorted at these satellite parks.

“Before the NPA launched the Eto system, we were told that we won’t pay more than N10,000 to access the system. Do you know that some of us now pay as much as N30,000 while using the e-call-up system? These things don’t happen at Lillypond but mostly at the satellite parks.

“We have complained and complained, but these poorly equipped satellite parks have not been sacked or replaced. Anytime we complain and the NPA decides to send a delegation to monitor activities of these parks, they (satellite parks) will quickly put on their generators to ensure that all these equipment that had been switched off for days, are working. Once the NPA delegation is gone, they return to their illegal way of milking truckers. If you complain, they will tell you that there is not enough power supply, yet operating an alternative power supply on a 24/7 basis was among the conditions set before they were registered. How long are we going to continue with this?”

Confirming to the Nigerian Tribune that some of the satellite parks lack enough physical infrastructures, Managing Director of the TTP, Mr. Jama Onwubuariri explained that the Lillypond Park is the only park that the company is responsible for. In the words of the TTP Managing Director, “The Lillypond Park is the only park that we are responsible for.

“The necessary infrastructures are here. The Lillypond Park is the pre-gate park and has everything needed to function to capacity. At a go, 550 trucks can stay inside the Lillypond Park. We are also in charge of all the port gates and have installed all the necessary access control on all of them.

“For the satellite parks, we are not responsible for the installation of hardware like CCTV and others there.

“Sometimes, there has been delay by these satellite parks in installing these necessary infrastructures inside their parks, and due to these, occasionally, it affects the efficiency of transactions, particularly for trucks that use their facilities.

“We are hoping that with NPA’s approval, we can take up the responsibility of installing these necessary equipment in these satellite parks and also recover our investment from them. But for now, we don’t have such approval.”

Questionable regulation

For the Council of Maritime Transport Unions and Associations (COMTUA), restricting port access to these satellite parks when they are not properly equipped raises questions over the manner of regulation that guides Eto.

Speaking with the Nigerian Tribune, National President of COMTUA, Comrade Adeyinka Aroyewun, explained that, “Under Eto, no other satellite park is allowed to operate except those listed by the NPA. If some of the registered parks are not properly equipped, and truckers are not allowed to use their own parks, don’t you think we have a problem?

“Do you know that some of these satellite parks mentioned in the list released by the NPA don’t exist? Let’s say there are 17 satellite parks, three out of the parks are pre-gate, and so what we have left is 14 satellite parks. How can 14 satellite parks handle thousands of trucks that call at the ports? Don’t forget, some of us have our own parks, but we are not allowed to use them for Eto.

“On dubious payments made at these satellite parks, when we initially started, the N10,000 that we were told that we will be paying included the satellite parks and pre-gate. The breakdown then was N3,000 for satellite parks, N3,000 for pre-gate and the remaining N4,000 will be shared by the NPA and TTP.

“But nowadays, when we go to the satellite parks, they will first demand about N10,000 or N15,000 from us. That is aside the N10,000 TTP will collect from us for using the Eto. At the end of the day, some of us end up paying about N25,000 or N30,000 just to use the Eto. Is this not fraud?”