*AIGs task port users to report police at checkpoints

The Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), the Nigeria Police Force, the Lagos State Government, truck owners and key maritime industry stakeholders have established a joint task force to tackle extortion, eliminate illegal checkpoints and resolve overlapping agency jurisdictions along the Apapa and Tin Can port corridors.

The decision was reached in Tuesday at a high-level stakeholders’ meeting convened by the NPA to address persistent operational challenges affecting cargo movement, truck operations and ease of doing business around the seaports, driving investment to to neighbouring ports.

Speaking after the meeting, the Managing Director, NPA, Dr. Abubakar Dantsoho, said the stakeholders focused on finding lasting solutions to peculiar challenges along the Apapa and Tin Can port corridors, particularly extortion, jurisdictional conflicts among security agencies and operational inefficiencies that continue to delay cargo evacuation and causing congestion at the ports.

According to him, the meeting established that extortion remains prevalent on roads outside the ports, particularly along the Tin Can Island corridor towards Berger and Isolo, as well as routes leading from the ports through Ijora Road towards Ikorodu and Surulere.

He also identified overlapping responsibilities between the Maritime Police Command and the Lagos State Police Command as another major issue requiring urgent attention.

The NPA boss noted that both the Assistant Inspector-General of Police in charge of the Maritime Command and the Lagos State Police Command categorically denied deploying officers to establish roadblocks or checkpoints along the port access roads.

Dantsoho added that the stakeholders also deliberated on ways to strengthen collaboration among all agencies operating within the port environment to create a smoother operational corridor and eliminate delays experienced by importers and exporters.

Dantsoho expressed optimism that the clarification would significantly improve traffic flow and operational efficiency along the corridor.

He stressed that the collective goal is to improve Nigeria’s competitiveness by positioning its ports as the leading maritime gateway in Africa and globally.

Also speaking, the Assistant Inspector-General of Police in charge of the Maritime Command, Okunade Ronke Nurat, noted that all participants agreed that a joint task force comprising the Lagos State Government, the NPA and other stakeholders would be established to ensure seamless operations around the ports.

Nurat assured stakeholders that any police officer found operating illegally under the guise of representing either the Lagos State Police Command or the Maritime Police would be sanctioned.

“If you see any police officer on the road claiming to have come from either Lagos State or Maritime Police, that person can be brought to book. We have decided that we have a way of getting such matters reported to the appropriate authority so that necessary action can be taken,” she said.

Representing the Lagos State Ministry of Transportation, the Director of Transport Operations, Olasunkanmi Ojowuro, said while the State government is responsible for managing roads leading to the ports, the challenges go beyond transportation, noting that authorities regularly arrest and prosecute offenders involved in illegal activities along the corridor.

He reaffirmed the State Government’s commitment to implementing all resolutions reached.
Ojowuro said the Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu remains passionate about transportation and traffic management under the THEMES Plus Agenda, adding that the state government has continued to deploy significant resources to address challenges associated with port operations.

Ojowuro disclosed that stakeholders agreed that no agency of the Lagos State Government would henceforth carry out enforcement activities within the port environment without the joint understanding reached at the meeting.

Similarly, the Assistant Inspector-General of Police in charge of Zone 2 Command, Olohundare Jimoh, distanced his command from activities along the port access roads.

“As far as Zone 2 is concerned, Zone 2 has no business in the corridor of the Port Authority. We have never posted any officer to any point at the Port Authority, and we have nothing to do with checkpoints there,” he stated.

Welcoming the outcome of the meeting, the National Secretary-General of the Association of Maritime Truck Owners (AMATO), Mohammed Bala, said truck operators were encouraged by the commitment of security agencies and government institutions to tackle extortion that has continued to hamper freight movement.

He said the association was particularly pleased that representatives of the Maritime Police, Zone 2 Command and the Lagos State Police Command all confirmed they never authorised personnel to mount checkpoints for the purpose of extorting truck drivers.

Bala also welcomed the decision to establish a committee comprising government agencies, freight forwarding associations and trucking groups to jointly address extortion, describing the move as critical to restoring seamless cargo evacuation, improving freight facilitation and enhancing the ease of doing business at Nigerian ports.