The managing director, Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Mr. Mohammed Bello-Koko, has warned against illegal stripping of along the port access road, describing the act as a “menace.”
Bello-Koko issued the warning in Lagos yesterday when he paid an unscheduled visit to Tin-Can Island Port where he inspected designated container stripping yards and the port access roads to ensure trucks were not loitering.
He said the authority would deal decisively with perpetrators of the unwholesome practice.
Container stripping, also called devanning, is the unloading or unpacking of cargo from the container.
“Truckers caught in the act stand the risk of being delisted from the electronic call-up system (Eto) platform managed by the Truck Transit Park Limited,” he said.
The managing director also said the NPA had rolled out standard operating procedures to serve as guidelines to all operators.
Bello-Koko emphasised that stripping constitutes a menace when undertaken outside designated yards.
“This provides a platform for trucks loitering around the port access roads which results in traffic disruptions and attendant chaos.
“NPA will intensify its vigilance and monitoring to nip the negative trend in the bud,” he said.
On the scarcity in some of the stripping yards, he acknowledged the impact of global economic upheavals on cargo flow and reiterated that a low business downturn could not constitute a justification for illegality.
He revealed that proposals for well-equipped stripping yards were receiving accelerated attention, signalling a shift from illegal roadside stripping.
He noted that on the sustainability of the measures, NPA would collaborate with other government agencies and the Lagos State government to ensure that such unhealthy practices no longer took place along the port access road.
“These unannounced spot visits will become more frequent and will be followed by regular stakeholder engagements to continuously improve the seamless operations of the Eto platform.
“Stripping yards that violate the operational rules will face temporal shutdowns for first-time offenders and the possibility of non-renewal of land leases for recalcitrant offenders.
“Stringent measures are geared towards maintaining orderliness and safety within the port environment,” he said.
