Connect with us

Maritime

SOAN Expels Member Over Indebtedness

Published

on

Ship Owners Association of Nigeria (SOAN) says it has expelled one of its members, Oil Flow Nigeria Ltd, over failure to refund to the Maritime Academy of Nigeria (MAN) monies received as payment for sea experience services.
Speaking on the expulsion, President of SOAN, Dr Mkgeorge Onyung, said Oil Flow Nigeria Ltd had been expelled from the Association after all efforts failed to make the company see the reason for the money to be refunded.
“In as much as I won’t like to join issues with the Rector over this matter, it is important that everybody knows that SOAN as a body did everything possible to make Oil Flow Nigeria Ltd refund the Academy.
“The Academy entered into an agreement with individual shipowners, who are members of SOAN, to provide sea experience opportunity for cadets of the Academy.
“SOAN as a body did not collect money from the Academy, it was an agreement entered into individually with shipowners who are SOAN members. So, that a member of SOAN refused to refund money collected from the Academy for sea experience services does not make every member of SOAN bad?
“For example, if a student or some students of the Academy go against the law of the school, does it make all the cadets of the school bad? No. So, for the Rector to categorise the whole of SOAN over the misdeed of one member is wrong.
“The SOAN leadership has been very cooperative with the Academy over this issue. What we have done is that we have expelled the erring member over this issue.
“The man has been expelled from SOAN and will only be re-admitted after he rectifies this issue because he is a shipowner. It is just unfortunate that the Rector said he is not going to deal with SOAN again because of this issue”, Onyung said.
Earlier, Rector of the Academy, Commodore Duja Effedua, affirmed that Oil Flow Nigeria Ltd collected money from the Academy to provide sea experience services to cadets of the school, but failed to provide such services and also did not refund the money like some other indigenous shipowners.
“The truth is that I am no more interested in that agreement with SOAN. I had good intentions and we started well, but one company, Oil Flow Nigeria Limited decided to defraud the Academy.
“The company took money but did not provide the required sea experience as stated in the agreement. Rather than refund the money like others who couldn’t meet up with the agreement, Oil Flow Nigeria Ltd chose to go to court.
“I am so disappointed because the owner of that company has children. Why would you deprive the children of other Nigerians opportunity for progress in life? Some companies collected money from us, but because they had a very busy schedule and there was no space to train our cadets, they returned the money.
“Oil Flow was tossing us up and down. They will ask us to come to Lagos, we will be in Lagos, and then they will say we should come to Port Harcourt.
“At a point, we had to ask them to give us our money because the siwes programme which was for four months was already over. We had to take the company to court and the case is still in court as we speak”, Effedua said.

By: Chinedu Wosu

Continue Reading

Maritime

Fall Off Container Crushes Woman To Death

Published

on

Tragedy struck on Friday, when a fully loaded 40ft container fell from a Mack truck and crushed a woman to death along Lagos, Ibadan Expressway.
The Tide gathered  that the Mack truck was on high speed when the incident occurred around NNPC inward Alapere, Ogudu, along Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.
A statement made available to our correspondent in Lagos by the Director, Public Affairs and Enlightment Department of Lagos State traffic Management Authority (LASTMA), Mr. Adebayo Taofiq, said a fully loaded 40ft Mack articulated truck fell on a Nissan car with registration number ABJ 692BG and instantly killed a woman at the rear of the car, while the car driver survived unhurt with the support of LASTMA officials.
Taofiq confirmed that the driver of the Mack articulated truck with his motor-boy ran away immediately the fatal accident occurred.
He said, according to preliminary investigation, the truck while on a high speed lost control as a result of a brake failure and rammed into a moving Nissan car on motion by N.N.P.C inward Alapere, Ogudu, along Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, Lagos.
The rescue agencies at the scene of the crash were the LASEMA, Lagos State Ambulance Service (LASAMBUS), Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service and the Police.
Also at the accident scene were the LASTMA General Manager, Mr. Olalekan Bakare-Oki, LASTMA Director of Traffic Incidents, Event Monitoring, Enforcement and Compliance, Mr. Hakeem Adeosun, and the LASTMA rescue team.
General Manager of LASTMA, Mr. Olalekan Bakare Oki, however, warned motoring public, particularly truck drivers, to stop over speeding and ensure their vehicles are properly checked, including the braking system, before embarking on any journey within or outside the State.
The incident attracted passers-by, who thronged the scene lamenting the unfortunate incident, accusing men of the ports task force of negligence.

 

By: Nkpemenyie Mcdominic, Lagos

Continue Reading

Maritime

PTML Customs Posts N66.92bn Revenue In First Quarter 2024

Published

on

The Port Terminal Multiservices Limited (PTML) Command of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has presented an impressive revenue record collection for the first quarter of 2024.
According to the Command, it collected the sum of N66,920,181,586.30 as total revenue for the quarter of 2024, which is N22,198,965,809.55 higher than N44,721,215,776.75 collected between January and March 2023, representing 49.6 percent increase.
The Customs Area Controller (CAC) of the Command , Compt. Saidu Abba Yusuf, who described the increase in revenue collection as a laudable feat , said the Command is more committed towards trade facilitation and support government drive for ease of doing business.
Comptroller Yusuf, who thanked the Comptroller General of Customs (CGC), Bashir Adewale Adeniyi, for initiating strategies to achieve faster cargo clearance, reiterared that PTML Command under his watch aims to surpass its record of three hour cargo clearance for compliant traders.
According to Yusuf, the launching of time release study (TRS), which is ongoing, and other deliberate efforts by the Comptroller General have contributed in the expansion of terminal space and promoting ease of doing business in PTML.
He also disclosed that the PTML Command has potentials to achieve two hour cargo clearance and surpass its existing three hours record, if port users compliance level is improved upon.
Comptroller Yusuf, who described PTML as one of the safest and most secure environment for RoRo (Roll On Roll Off) and general cargoes, also advised importets and their agents to take advantage of the incentives available for compliant traders such as fast track, advance ruling and possible migration to the Authorised Economic Operator (AEO) status.
He reminded port users in PTML of the robust and time conscious dispute resolution mechanism, which has contributed immensely to the revenue collection, trade facilitation and anti smuggling functions of the Command.
While commending the various government and private sector stakeholders for their cooperation and support towards realisation of government goal of revenue collection and prevention of unlawful activities, Comptroller Yusuf expressed optimism that the Command will surpass its annual target for the year.

Continue Reading

Maritime

Customs Comptroller Lauds Scanning Officers Over Efficiency

Published

on

The Customs Area Controller (CAC) of Apapa Customs Command, Comptroller Babajide Jaiyeoba, has commended the officers of the Non Intrusive Inspection Technology Unit (NIITU) for their invaluable contributions to the overall success of the Command.
Comptroller Jaiyeoba, who was on an unscheduled visit to the scanner site, reminded the officers of the importance of team work as a strong basis to sustain the gains of compliance and revenue collection recently recorded by the Command.
According to a statement by the Public Relations Officer, Apapa Command, CSC Abubakar Usman, Comptroller Jaiyeoba thanked Deputy Comptroller, Salamatu Atuluku, the Officer in Charge of scanning site, and encouraged the unit not to be deterred by complaints coming from persons who were made to pay accurate duties to government after issuance of demand notices.
The Customs boss stated that no business person who is made to part with money will be happy with officers that refused compromising the ethics of their job.
He noted that “The main reason for me coming here is to appreciate you. I may not see you, but I have seen your work and I won’t keep quiet about what I have seen about your work. You are doing very well. I just want to encourage you to work as a team. If you don’t work as a team, you give room for outsiders to come in and when they come in, they divide you, and when they divide you, achieving success will be very difficult.
“Do your work without blemish. Once you keep your arm straight, you can stand before anybody. Your work as a Customs Officer is to ensure that you do the correct thing.
“For those of you doing intervention in the form of Demand Notice (DN), there is no body who part with money that will be happy with you. They will want to play intelligent by hiding somewhere. When you fetch them from their hiding place, they become your enemy.
Whatever they write about anybody here will still come down to me and if anybody works well, the onus on me is to defend such a person .
“Just have it at the back of your mind that you owe yourself the duty of doing your work diligently whether anyone comes around as a friend or enemy. It is not enough for you to rest. The reward for hard work is more work. These demands require sacrifice so that you can maintain the status”.

Continue Reading

Trending