Stakeholders express optimism over reconstruction of Apapa road

Stakeholders operating in the maritime industry have described the reconstruction of the Apapa Road as a welcome development in view of the hardship and trauma Nigerians face accessing the port and their work places.

This followed the July 7 agreement reached by some concerned parties to take necessary measures on the reconstruction of major roads leading to the nation’s busiest seaport,For this to work, part of the agreement reached at the stakeholders’ meeting held last week in Lagos, was the resolve to ensure that truck owners removed their vehicles from the roads to facilitate the reconstruction work because the roads have been automatically closed with trucks parked on the roads.

According to them, there is no alternative means the reconstruction of Apapa-Wharf Road can commence when trucks are parked indiscriminately within the port environs.When The Guardian visited the Tin Can Island Port over the weekend, truckers, who have turned the roads as their parking lots while trying to secure jobs from customers, were chased out by security operatives, except trucks going inside the port to load consignments. Joining in enforcing the order are members of the Freight Forwarding and Truck Owners Association.

The National Publicity Secretary of the Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA), Kayode Farinto, described the rehabilitation of the Apapa-Wharf Road as a welcomed approach.

He said the lingering challenges on the road became more worrisome given the huge amount of revenue generated daily from the seaport.“We are happy about it the reconstruction of the roads. This is an eyesore even to the economy that generates N10billion daily from the port. I have told my people that whatever will be the inconvenience we should try and bear with the government.”

On the indiscriminate parking of trucks on the port access roads, Farinto said: “Gone are the days when you just leave your trucks on the access roads or expressway looking for customers or sourcing for jobs, we should learn to live with the fact that things are changing. The freight forwarding truck owners associations are also here, it’s a collective thing. It’s a welcome development.”

But some other stakeholders are specifically concerned about the movement of goods in and out of the ports during the one year closure of the roads.The former president of the National Association of Government Approved freight forwarders (NAGAFF), Eugene Nweke, said while adequate modalities are put in place as the construction begins, shippers should also be put into consideration as they are also co-implementers of the Nigerian project.

“Are we now saying that within this period that Apapa would be withdrawn from the main port in line with the law governing carriage of goods by sea from its main port of origin where your cargo is coming? So, if Apapa will not be designated as the main port within this one year, then we will know. But if Apapa would be designated as the main port, then shippers will go to ship their cargo from point of origin to come to Apapa port, and only to find out that their goods cannot go out due to road construction.

“There should be harmony between the terminal operators and the government because they are there to give cargo volume inwards and outwards, while shippers should be put into consideration as the construction works begins, let us not take into benevolence the patient of the shippers,” Nweke siad the National Chairman, Save Nigeria Freight Forwarders Importers and Exporters Coalition (SNFFIEC), Osita Chukwu, however, believe the one year duration is too much for the reconstruction of the Apapa-Wharf road.

While appreciating government’s concerns in fixing the roads, some operators, Chukwu noted that the huge sum of money running into trillions of naira that government had lost due to the deplorable state of the roads in many years.

As a result, he urged that the reconstruction of the port roads should not exceed six months if necessary measures are put in place, noting that if the Abuja airport runway could be fixed within six weeks, same speed should be applied to the port roads.he asked: “What are they going to do on the road that would take one year? Do you know what one year is to the economy? Six months is enough to work on the roads. Government has lost trillions of naira in for the past years as a result of the deplorable states of these roads.”He urged government to give priority to the reconstruction of the roads to make it motorable, relieve the sufferings of those living along the axis, and improve the ease of doing business.