By Anthony Nwachukwu
As part of efforts to reduce the Apapa gridlock, Marine and Blue Economy Minister, Adegboyega Oyetola, has set up a committee to review the electronic-call-up system in place at the port corridor and come up with measures to check its abuse.
The committee, according to a statement Wednesday from the minister’s spokesman, Ismail Omipidan, is to review the Standard Operating Procedures for Truck Traffic Management along the Lagos port corridor.
Omipidan, who noted that the committee was expected to meet with other critical stakeholders in Lagos Thursday for the review, quoted the minister as saying that “every possible abuse of the system by humans should be x-rayed and solutions provided with a view to ensuring that it is abuse-free.”
In the e-call-up system introduced by the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) in February 2021 for trucks at the Lagos ports, truckers were expected to use to book turns to enter the ports. However, recent reports have alleged compromises in the functionality of the system.
“I have a number of suggestions on how I believe the system can be strengthened, but I want inputs from the stakeholders,” the minister said.
“This is why I have set up this committee to interface with the service provider and other stakeholders in the industry to come up with the best way of dealing decisively with the saboteurs.”
