Maritime

Retirees Send SOS To Jonathan

Published

15 years ago

July 9, 2010

Nigerian Ports Authority retirees of 1991 have appealed for President Goodluck Jonathan’s intervention over the non-payment of their terminal benefits.

The retirees lamented that nearly 20 years after they were unlawfully retrenched, the management of the authority has not given them their statutory rights as its former employees.

Speaking to The Tide in Port Harcourt on Wednesday, one of the affected retirees who preferred anonymity said many of their colleagues have lost their lives, children, with wards thrown out of schools and homes as they could no longer meet their basic responsibilities over the years.

In a save our souls’ (SOS) letter addressed to President Jonathan, he said, the 1991 retirees of NPA said their appointments were unlawfully terminated on June 10, 1991 by NPA without compliance with the federal government circular on pensions and gratuity.

According to him, the content of the letter states that the federal government circular supersedes any circular of NPA in the event of any conflict. Noting that the federal government had on September 13, 1991 issued a circular No. B.632 16/S.1/X/618 through the Federal Ministry of Establishment to all federal ministries and all federal parastatals on pension review.

“This circular took effect from January 1,1991. The circular ref No B. 632/6/S.1/x/618 of September 13, 1991 as the amendment of the pension act of 1990 and the federal government official gazette No. 98 volume 69, amendment act 1982, and NPA condition of service. At this time, the circular has duly covered us while in service.

“The circular stipulates that we are entitled to pension and gratuity. That is pension for those of us who served the authority for a period of 10 years and above but less than 15 years, and gratuity for those who served the authority for a period of 5 years and above but less than 10 years.

The retirees expressed dismay that a demand for the payment of their entitlement was not accepted by the management of the authority over the years despite repeated appeals to several quarters.

“We consider it a denial of our entitlement and had no alternative than to go to court because we could not have wasted more time since NPA is a statutory body to avoid time barred. We instituted suit No LD/1827/92 to secure the payment of our entitlement from NPA. The conclusion of the trial by the Hon. Justice A.R.A Shaid of the Lagos High Court was on July 12, 1996 was in favour of the retrenched staff.

“The court had declared that pension and redundancy be paid to those of us who served NPA for years and above but less than 15 years and gratuity for those of us who served for 5 years above but less than 10 years. Let us make it abundantly clear to the general public that NPA management and its board never intended to pay our entitlements, hence, the refusal and denial of same 19 years after disengagement despite court judgement and all ministerial directives for our payment”, they said.

The former employees of the authority said the management of NPA refused to honour the judgement of the high court against the judgement in suit No. CA/L/42597.

“This appeal was on February 16, 1998 dismissed for want of diligent prosecution. The NPA and its board ignored all communication from our lawyer, Mr. Makinde, for modalities to settle the retirees and went ahead to institute a fresh suit NO. LD/1021/99; this time to set aside the judgement of Justice A.R.A Shaid of Lagos High Court.

This new suit was dismissed our lawyer wrote again to NPA notifying it of the dismissed suit NPA went to Appeal Court in suit NO CA/L99/2002 and the appeal was allowed, so we went to Supreme Court in suit No SC/190/2003. The judgement of this suit was on May 11, 2007 in favour of the retrenched staff. This judgement of the Supreme Court affirmed the judgement of the court of Lagos by Hon. Justice Shaid. Yet NPA refuses to pay till date.”

“As a result of this the retrenched staff went to the Senate with an appeal to the Committee on Establishment and Public Services. The Senate directed the managing director to comply based on the Supreme Court judgement. They refused to obey. We went to Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation, Alhaji Mohammed Adoke’s office with an appeal.

“The minister wrote to the Managing Director of NPA advising NPA to comply immediately with the judgement. Yet it refused to obey. We do not know who is standing against our payment or where NPA gets its strength for what it is doing,” the aggrieved former employees added in their letter to Jonathan.

Maritime

Inefficiency, corruption bane of Regional Trade,Says NACCIMA Boss

Published

6 days ago

December 22, 2025

The Tide

Chairman of the National Chamber of Commerce Industry Mines and Agriculture Export group, Mr.Kolawole Awe has identified inefficiency and corruption as the two major factors responsible for poor implementation of government’s policies in the country.

Awe made this observation in a speech delivered at the 2nd annual Ports and Transborder international Discuss held at Sycamore Hotel ,Badagry-Lagos on Friday.

The NACCIMA Export group boss expressed regrets over what he described as the poor treatment of Nigerians by those working in various government security agencies , whose services he said sometimes fell short of expectations and added that the twin forces of inefficiency and corruption had further worsened the woe bedeviling the country with attendant negative impact on its social economy development.

On ways to address the problem,Awe urged every stakeholders to imbibe a new attitudinal change in the work places , which should be in consonance with the Regional Trade principle .

Earlier,in his welcome address,the President,Badagry Chamber of Commerce Industry Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA),Alhaji Yahaya Oladiran Idris said the importance of the seminar with the theme:”Bridging Borders, Building National prosperity and strengthening Regional Trade” was part of the objectives of Baccima as the voice of business society along the Lagos -ABIDJAN trade corridor.

“Seme the most important border post in west Africa is to protect the interest of of it members and business community,see to the growth and development of economic activities in the region”,he said.

“It gladdens me to inform you today that one of our advocacy for easy movements of our citizens,traders and travellers across Seme border post on the issuance of Biometric identification was unveiled by the federal government through the Nigeria Immigration Services on Thursday in Abuja”

According to him, “the ports and Transborder international trade discuss was meant to give stakeholders the platform to examine and share challenges collectively and to build bridges of understanding , cooperation and innovation.

In his contribution, co-organizer of the program,Mr. James Shodiya disclose that the the gathering was designed to shape the future of trade across the borders and strengthening the framework and support regional and global commerce.

He further explained that ‘in today’s interconnected world the efficiency the borders defined the strength of the economies from customs operations to port management , from transport logistics to digital trade systems, adding that the movement of goods across the boundaries effects every sector of national development.

Comptroller Frank Onyeka, Customs Area Controller of Tin Can Island Port Customs Command and Sponsor of the Maritime Journalists Training Workshop 2025, receiving award of appreciation from Innocent Orok, CEO, Roam Media Group and Coordinator of 2025 Maritime Journalists Training Workshop held at the Tin Can Island Customs Conference Room on 17th November 2025.

By: Nkpemenyie Mcdominic, Lagos

Maritime

Stakeholders Advocate Legal Framework For NSW Project

Published

6 days ago

December 22, 2025

The Tide

Ahead of the March 2026 takeoff of the National Single Window (NSW) project, maritime industry stakeholders have called for a robust legal framework to ensure the seamless rollout of the unified digital project.

The stakeholders who made the call at the 10th Annual Seminar for Maritime Journalists and launch of the Centre for Maritime Media and Capacity Development in Lagos on Wednesday warned that without a unifying law, the NSW project risked being stifled by the conflicting mandates of various government agencies and the high cost of previous digital failures.

Speaking at the event organised by First Mediacon Network Limited, CEO of Wealthy Honey Investment and former Vice President of ANLCA, Dr. Kayode Farinto emphasized that the NSW must submerge the individual acts of various government agencies into a unified legal structure to prevent jurisdictional clashes.

He said, “SON has its act. NAFDAC has its act. Quarantine and Customs have theirs. For us to house these government agencies, there must be a legal framework so that it will be sacrosanct and everybody will know that this is the armbit of law with which we must operate.

“In the legal framework, there must be punishment for CEOs who deliberately circumvent, delay cargo and make officers to exploit traders or freight forwarders unnecessarily.

” Farinto also highlighted additional burdens imposed by regulatory agencies, citing examination fees charged by the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) despite offshore certification. He noted that the NSW must address such problems including teething challenges of previous digital transitions such as the B’Odogwu platform failure, which he said cost importers over N7 billion due to connectivity issues.

“Importers are charged between N3,000 and N7,000 per container for examinations, even when conformity certificates have already been issued. This discourages trade and encourages circumvention.

“The NSW must not come with the same teething problems we suffered with B’Odogwu, which cost importers over N7 billion and nobody is saying anything. There must be attitudinal change among government agencies and licensed customs agents,” he said.

Also speaking, Vice President of ANLCA, Prince Segun Oduntan represented by Suleiman Ayokunle, Chief Executive Officer of SULA Logistics Limited noted that operators still contend with several government regulatory agency platforms, alongside multiple internal windows covering enforcement, scanning, gate operations, and cargo clearing processes.

He cautioned that unless the NSW effectively harmonises agency roles and processes, such financial losses could persist, undermining the very efficiencies the reform seeks to achieve.

In his remarks, maritime lawyer Dr. Emeka Akabogu SAN pointed out that Nigeria continued to perform poorly on the Global Logistics Index due to excessive manual intervention.

He praised the Nigeria Customs Service Act of 2023 for domesticating WTO trade facilitation agreements but stressed that the NSW was the only way to achieve a single digital approval. In his remarks, the Executive Secretary and CEO of the Nigerian Shippers Council (NSC), represented by Director of Special Duties Moses Abere, stated that as the sector digitalizes, journalism must evolve to ensure transparency and accountability.

“As the maritime sector grows more complex, driven by digitalisation, new trade realities, regulatory reforms, and global logistical shifts, journalism must evolve accordingly,” Akutah said.

He reiterated the Council’s commitment, as the Port Economic Regulator, to promoting efficiency, transparency, and competitiveness in the sector. He added that the theme of the seminar—“A Decade of Collaboration for Impact: Strengthening Maritime Journalism for the Future”—reflects the critical role of partnerships in building a stronger maritime industry.

“Over the years, maritime journalists have worked closely with regulators, operators, policymakers, and stakeholders to illuminate challenges and opportunities in the sector,” he said.

“The media remains an essential partner in informing stakeholders, shaping public understanding, and strengthening accountability.

” In his welcome address, CEO of First Mediacon Network Limited, Sesan Onileimo highlighted the urgent need for maritime journalists to upscale their knowledge, particularly in an era dominated by artificial intelligence, digitalisation, and social media.

“All of these developments have combined to put journalists under intense pressure to report factual information promptly while remaining relevant.

“The Centre has been established to bridge this gap, ensuring maritime journalists, regardless of experience, remain equipped to deliver accurate, impactful reporting, ” he said.

By: Nkpemenyie Mcdominic, Lagos

Maritime

Customs To Impose 3% Penalty On Commercial Banks Over Delay In Remittances Of Collected Revenue

Published

6 days ago

December 22, 2025

The Tide

The Nigerian Customs Service has warned that commercial banks which fail to remit Customs revenue within contracted timeline will now pay a penalty of 3% above the prevailing Nigerian Interbank Offered Rate (NIBOR) for the duration of the delay.

The Customs in a statement on Wednesday said some banks designated to collect import and export duties on the B’Odogwu platform had turned on their delay tactics for too long, warning that such banks would pay heavily for the delay in remitting public funds collected through it.

The statement signed by the agency’s national spokesman, Dr Abdullahi Maiwada read in part: “The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has noted instances of delayed remittance of Customs revenue by some Designated Banks following reconciliation of collections processed through the B’odogwu platform. Such delays constitute a breach of remittance obligations and negatively impact the efficiency, transparency, and integrity of government revenue administration.

“In line with the provisions of the Service Level Agreement (SLA) executed between the Nigeria Customs Service and Designated Banks, the Service hereby notifies stakeholders of the commencement of enforcement actions against banks found to be in default of agreed remittance timelines.

“Accordingly, any Designated Bank that fails to remit collected Customs revenue within the prescribed period shall be liable to penalty interest calculated at three percent (3%) above the prevailing.

By: Nkpemenyie Mcdominic, Lagos