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Stakeholders Berate PH Port Operator

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14 years ago

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Some Stakeholders in the Maritime industry have scored a concessionaire at the Port Harcourt Wharf, the BUA Ports and Terminal Limited, very low for failing to live up to its concessioning agreement.

The Tide has reliably gathered that instead of developing the port,  BUA has decided to let some facilities at the port to decay without re-activating them.

Speaking on the matter, the Chairman of the Assocation of Nigeria Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA) Port Harcourt Sea Port One, Chief Obi Chima said that he is discouraged with the activities of BUA for not showing interest in the real development and better business activities at Port Harcourt Port, like their counterpart, the ports and Terminal Operators Limited (PTOL) which has shown interest in so many areas of the port’s development.

He pointed out that BUA has refused to rebuild berth six which collapsed in the course of their taking over operation in Port Harcourt Wharf, saying that such attitude does not speak well of the company, whereas their counterpart has gone ahead to reconstruct all the berths under their jurisdiction, even though such did not collapse.

Also speaking, the Public Relations Officer of the Area One Command of the Nigerian Customs Service (NCS) Port Harcourt, Mr. D.A. Jack, has said that various concessionaires have different concessioning agreements, but wondered why BUA has not really demonstrated interest in the Port’s development.

He said that if the BUA Port and Terminal will come up to emulate what the PTOL, their counterpart, is already doing, that Port Harcourt port will be transformed as expected.

Meanwhile, source from the Public Relations Officer of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Port Harcourt Port Complex, has hinted that the concessionaires have not actually lived up to expectation.

The NPA Public Relations source however, gave considerations to the performance of PTOL for huge investment made in trying to return the port to container cargo operations, but remarked that BUA is only concerned with how best it can exploit avenue to make profit from existing port’s facilities.

However, the inability to speak with the Wharf Manager of BUA, Mr. Chinedu Eze, was due to his not being steady in the office as he was always said to be out on official duties.

Corlins Walter

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Kenyan Runners Dominate Berlin Marathons

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8 hours ago

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September 22, 2025

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Kenya made it a clean sweep at the Berlin Marathon with Sabastian Sawe winning the men’s race and Rosemary Wanjiru triumphing in the women’s.

Sawe finished in two hours, two minutes and 16 seconds to make it three wins in his first three marathons.

The 30-year-old, who was victorious at this year’s London Marathon, set a sizzling pace as he left the field behind and ran much of the race surrounded only by his pacesetters.

Japan’s Akasaki Akira came second after a powerful latter half of the race, finishing almost four minutes behind Sawe, while Ethiopia’s Chimdessa Debele followed in third.

“I did my best and I am happy for this performance,” said Sawe.

“I am so happy for this year. I felt well but you cannot change the weather. Next year will be better.”

Sawe had Kelvin Kiptum’s 2023 world record of 2:00:35 in his sights when he reached halfway in 1:00:12, but faded towards the end.

In the women’s race, Wanjiru sped away from the lead pack after 25 kilometers before finishing in 2:21:05.

Ethiopia’s Dera Dida followed three seconds behind Wanjiru, with Azmera Gebru, also of Ethiopia, coming third in 2:21:29.

Wanjiru’s time was 12 minutes slower than compatriot Ruth Chepng’etich’s world record of 2:09:56, which she set in Chicago in 2024.

 

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NIS Ends Decentralised Passport Production After 62 Years

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8 hours ago

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September 22, 2025

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The Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) has officially ended passport production at multiple centres, transitioning to a single, centralised system for the first time in 62 years.
Minister of Interior, Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, made the disclosure during an inspection of the Nigeria’s new Centralised Passport Personalisation Centre at the NIS Headquarters in Abuja, last Thursday.
He stated that since the establishment of NIS in 1963, Nigeria had never operated a central passport production centre, until now, marking a major reform milestone.
“The project is 100 per cent ready. Nigeria can now be more productive and efficient in delivering passport services,” Tunji-Ojo said.
He explained that old machines could only produce 250 to 300 passports daily, but the new system had a capacity of 4,500 to 5,000 passports every day.
“With this, NIS can now meet daily demands within just four to five hours of operation,” he added, describing it as a game-changer for passport processing in Nigeria.
“We promised two-week delivery, and we’re now pushing for one week.
“Automation and optimisation are crucial for keeping this promise to Nigerians,” the minister said.
He noted that centralisation, in line with global standards, would improve uniformity and enhance the overall integrity of Nigerian travel documents worldwide.
Tunji-Ojo described the development as a step toward bringing services closer to Nigerians while driving a culture of efficiency and total passport system reform.
According to him, the centralised production system aligns with President Bola Tinubu’s reform agenda, boosting NIS capacity and changing the narrative for improved service delivery.
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FG To Roll Out Digital Public Infrastructure, Data Exchange, Next Year 

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8 hours ago

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September 22, 2025

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The National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) has announced plans to roll out Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) and the Nigerian Data Exchange (NGDX) platforms across key sectors of the economy, starting in early 2026.
Director of E-Government and Digital Economy at NITDA, Dr. Salisu Kaka, made the disclosure in Abuja during a stakeholder review session of the DPI and NGDX drafts at the Digital Public Infrastructure Live Event.
The forum, themed “Advancing Nigeria’s Digital Public Infrastructure through Standards, Data Exchange and e-Government Transformation,” brought together regulators, state governments, and private sector stakeholders to harmonise inputs for building inclusive, secure, and interoperable systems for governance and service delivery.
According to Kaka, Nigeria already has several foundational elements in place, including national identity systems and digital payment platforms.
What remains is the establishment of the data exchange framework, which he said would be finalised by the end of 2025.
“Before the end of this year and by next year we will be fully ready with the foundational element, and we start dropping the use cases across sectors,” Kaka explained.
He stressed that the federal government recognises the autonomy of states urging them to align with national standards.
“If the states can model and reflect what happens at the national level, then we can have a 360-degree view of the whole data exchange across the country and drive all-of-government processes,” he added.
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