NPPM: PSTT Intervention Recovers N5.4bn On Vessels Demurrage At Seaports In One Year

The Port Standing Task Team (PSTT) disclosed on Wednesday in Lagos, that it has saved the nation’s economy a whooping N5.4 billion  from an average vessels demurrage between 2021 and 2022.

PSTT which is domiciled under the Nigerian Shippers Council as lead agency with additional support from the Nigerian Ports Authority NPA, Department for State Services DSS and Independent Corrupt Practice and other related Offences Commission (ICPC), put together a two day programme to evaluate it performance and the way forward.

Speaking on vessel demurrage, at an enlarged meeting of the Presidential Port Standing Task Team (PPSTT) with Industry stakeholders, National Coordinator, PSTT, Comrade Moses Fadipe, said that the amount represents an average of $20,000 per vessel demurrage daily.

 

Fadipe noted that through the interventions of the PSTT, over 85 per cent of vessels that came through the nation’s ports and terminals left without incident in 2021.

 

 

The PSTT Coordinator, further attributed the feat to the interventions of the task team in restoring sanity along the port corridors and ports logistics ring.

 

He said “Even though revenue generation is not the primary concern of the task team, deterrence through fine is one of the tools through which we are able to record our successes of Operation Free the Port Corridors.

 

“In the process, revenues to the tone of N1,023,000 have accrued to the Federal Government Treasury Single Account through fines,” he said.

 

The PSTT bosd also lamented that some of the over 75 extortion points which where earlier dismantled along the port corridor are now begining to return gradually.

 

 

“Some others are drastic reduction in incidences of extortions by both state and non-state actors, and freer movement of vehicles and persons along the ports’ logistics ring.

Fadipe said that the activities of the task team was a positive barometer, showing the teams contribution to the actualisation of the objectives of Executive Order 1 on ease of doing business in Nigeria as enshrined through the Nigerian Port Process Manual (NPPM).

He, however, expressed optimism that the successes would be sustained with good strategies of consolidation aimed at surpassing the previous gains.

Fadipe pointed out that their achievements did not come without occasional hazards such as assaults on personal of the task team, which were carried out by private operators and high ranking government officials.

He noted that their operation was an offshoot of the implementation of the Nigerian Port Process Manual (NPPM) which successful implementation should change the corruption perception index by Transparency International about Nigeria.

On the issues of touting along the port corridor and other complaints, Fadipe assured the stakeholders that it would be addressed in less than 30 days starting from April 3.

“It is important to consciously partake in proffering effective and sustainable solutions in partnership like this. I am confident that today’s meeting which objective is to review activities in 2022 and strategize for 2023, will come up with strong resolutions going forward.

“Operation Free the Port Corridor is an action plan put in place by the collaborative efforts of the Federal Government agencies and private stakeholders in the port supported by the Federal Ministry of Transportation to rid the port corridors of impediments and corrupt practices.

“It was realised that stoppage of trucks along the port corridor constitute the biggest encumbrance to the free flow of traffic and this breeds extortion and corrupt practices,” he said.

Fadipe said that the Federal Ministry of Transportation had on April 14, 2022 flagged off the exercise to remove all illegal checkpoint and shanties along the port corridor to eliminate traffic gridlock and corrupt practices and impediments to ease of doing business.

“On strategies for the year, we will not dwell on challenges, we focus on the best we can do to achieve what we can within the resources in our disposals. This is the spirit that we will continue with,” he said.

However,the task team  vowed to resume it’s onslaught against the extortion points, some of which were mounted by Federal Operations Unit (FOU) of Nigeria Customs Service, Nigerian Police as well as hoodlums from various Local Government Areas around the Port.

Some of the stakeholders who commented during the meeting decried the activities of touts, non-state and state actors along the port corridor, urging the PSTT to look into it.

On his part ,the Executive Secretary, Nigerian Association of Road Transport Owners, Mr Aloga Ogbogbo, said that the extortion was now taking place at odd hours.

Ogogbo urged the task team to extend their operations to cover the odd hours that the touts operate.

Freight forwaders and customs brokers in attendance at the expand meeting further urged the PSTT to extend the operations to the port terminals .

They called on the Fadipe led team to further engage terminal operators over lack of handling equipment at the port terminals.

Commenting, Mr Mohammed Bala, from the Association of Maritime Truck Owners, while appreciating the efforts of the task team said that the extortion checkpoints that were removed had returned on the port corridor.

“The touts have technically crossed to the inbound section of the port access road and causing so much havoc there.

“Truckers are profusely bleeding due to the activities of these people. From Mile 2 down to Second Gate, these touts are littered there,” he said.