Port users are at loggerheads over the functionality of the electronic call-up system regulating the movement of containers to and from the Lagos seaports.
While some groups have staged protests, describing the system as failed and fraudulent, citing persistent extortion along port corridors, others argue that calls for the system’s removal are being driven by individuals seeking to revive the old regime of exploitation and chaos that caused perennial traffic congestion around the ports.
Members of the Council of Maritime Transport Unions and Associations (COMTUA) and the National Association of Maritime Transport Operators (NAMTOP) recently took to the streets in protest, expressing deep frustration with the current system.
According to them, their businesses are collapsing, and port logistics have been hijacked by foreign truck operators and personnel of the Nigerian military, leaving local transporters struggling to survive.
They further alleged that instead of resolving corruption and congestion, the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) has enabled extortion.
The protesters demanded a transparent review of the system and immediate reforms to restore order.
They insisted that the situation had deteriorated and called for the complete removal of the call-up system.
Some truckers, however, alleged that those leading the campaign for the system’s removal were in fact part of the cabals, who benefited from the former era of unregulated truck movement and extortion.
They argued that such individuals were now aggrieved because the digital reforms had crippled their illicit income streams.
The Secretary General of the Lagos State Truck and Cargo Operators Committee (LASTCOC), Mr Mohammed Sani, raised the alarm over alleged attempts by certain interest groups to sabotage the electronic call-up system governing truck movement into Lagos ports, describing such moves as a ploy to restore the chaotic manual regime.
The electronic call-up system, introduced by the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) in collaboration with Truck Transit Park Limited and relevant stakeholders, was designed to decongest access roads to Apapa and Tin Can ports, reduce extortion, and streamline truck movement through a digital scheduling process.
Meanwhile, the Africa Association of Professional Freight Forwarders and Logistics of Nigeria (APFFLON) has affirmed its support for the ongoing automation of the truck call-up system at the ports, while distancing itself from any protest against the reforms.
Speaking on behalf of the association, the Public Relations Officer of the Tin Can Island chapter, Clinton Ikechukwu Okoro, disclosed that customs agents and freight forwarders had been actively engaged in discussions with the NPA, terminal operators, and other stakeholders regarding improvements to the electronic call-up platform.
