Truck owners, drivers urge NPA to sack TTP, say ETO has failed
The coalition of truck owners and their drivers has called on the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) to sack Trucks and Transit Parks Limited (TTP), the operators of NPA’s electronic call-up system (ETO).
The coalition, under the aegis of the Council for Maritime Truck Unions and Associations (COMTUA), believe that the ETO has been bastardised and riddled with unprecedented corruption which has made the system collapse.
Ventilating the position of truck owners on the issue, the National President of COMTUA, Mr. Adeyinka Aroyewun, said the only solution is to sack the TTP, the operators of ETO, due to its gross incompetence and insatiable appetite to make money at the expense of truck owners and drivers.
In a letter to the management of the NPA, Aroyewun observed that the gradual return of traffic gridlock on the port access roads was a clear manifestation of the failure of ETO and the need to rejig the system.
He faulted the decision of the NPA to sanction the trucks that accessed the port without the necessary documents on December 23rd, 2023, saying such action is not a solution to the traffic gridlock that is now building up along the port corridor.
In the letter dated December 29th, 2023, and addressed to the NPA MD, Mohammed Bello-Koko, the association said it was opposed to the penalty.
“We are writing to you today to express our strong opposition to the Nigerian Ports Authority’s intention through TTP/ETO to penalise trucks that access the port without the necessary call-up documents on the 22nd of December, 2023.
“We understand that the need to suspend the barrier occurred as a result of uncontrollable gridlock at the port corridor.
“However, we strongly believe that penalising trucks that access the port without the necessary documents is not the solution to the problem.
“We are aware that the Electronic Call Up System has been a complete failure, and the recent traffic gridlock at the port corridor is further evidence of this failure.
“It is not the fault of drivers and truck owners that the call-up system is not working.
“Therefore, it is unjustifiable to penalise our members for the inadequacies of the call-up system.
“We are disappointed that the Nigerian Ports Authority and its handlers are more concerned about illicit revenue generation than solving the problem of the traffic gridlock.
“Penalising truck drivers and owners who are already struggling to make ends meet will only exacerbate our problems.
“The intention is nothing but to forcefully collect money for services you have not rendered.
“We never thought of this level of desperation to extort truckers from any government agency.
“A responsible management of an organisation would have tendered an apology to drivers and truck owners in this instance.
“We call on you to suspend the intention to impose penalties or collect payments from truckers on this ground and work towards finding a lasting solution to the traffic gridlock at the port corridor.
“We urge you to prioritise the free entry and exit in and around the Port and the welfare of truck drivers and owners, who are essential to the smooth running of the port and the economy at large.
“We strongly believe that penalising them is not the solution to the problem, and we call on you to do the right thing,” the COMTUA President declared.
Aroyewun however advocated that in the place of the highly compromised TTP, the NPA should create a tripartite collaboration with terminal operators, Truckers and Customs brokers for a legitimate traffic management system.
He also sought transparent policy formulation and implementation with sincerity of purpose backed by strong political will to address issues.
The COMTUA National President however lamented that the NPA’s strong appetite for extortions through its ally, TTP, has been the bane of ETO as the agency has repeatedly ignored the words of wise counsels from concerned stakeholders.
It could be recalled that there has been an outcry against the activities of touts and compromised operators of ETO which have led to the high level of corruption and extortions in the system.
Among several ills of the ETO system are the activities of a syndicate whose members had cashed in on the loose control of the system to impose illegal fees of N150,000 on each ETO ticket.
Also, another syndicate, whose rank was recently bursted by the NPA, engaged in large-scale counterfeiting of ETO tickets which they sell to unsuspecting truck drivers.
This large-scale fraud and corruption in the system made the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola, to order for a complete overhaul of the NPA’s electronic call-up system with a view to cleansing the rot in the system.
