FG loses N22bn to Apapa congestion –Don

Professor of Transport, Logistics and
Spatial Planning at the University of
Lagos, Prof. Iyiola Oni, has said the
Federal Government loses about N22
billion on a conservative estimate to tank
farm obstructions and general congestion
at the Apapa ports in Lagos.
The university don explained that the
closure of Creek Road in Apapa due to the
activities of petroleum tank farm
operators along the axis was a nightmare
not only to motorists but the economy as
a whole.
The professor who recently delivered a
lecture entitled, “Port Infrastructure:
Modernising Maritime Transport Infra­
structure in a Landlord Port Model” at a
Maritime seminar in Lagos joined other
stakeholders to amplify the call for the
relocation of tank farms in Apapa.
Oni, who was represented by Dr.
Emmanuel Ege, observed that the
activities of petroleum tanker drivers have
hindered container-laden trucks from
accessing the port, thus killing several
businesses in the area with many Nigeri­
ans thrown out of jobs.
He noted that the traffic situation along
the axis has now stretched to the Mile 2
area worsening vehicular movement.
“Today, the Creek Road has been under
lock and key for four years. We have done
an evaluation and it is costing this
country N22 billion annually. In fact, it
should be more than that because we
only looked at Apapa, we didn’t look at
Tin Can. Now the nuisance has stretched
to Mile 2, and we ask ourselves, is it only
Apapa we have in this country?”
He, however, joined the Federal Road
Safety Commission (FRSC) and other
stakeholders to call for the quick re­
location of the tank farms from Apapa
Port to other ports like the Koko Port.
He further appealed to the Nigerian Ports
Authority (NPA) to return the operations
franchise on the port which it had
withdrawn before now.
“Why should we have all the tank farms
at Apapa. Koko Port is there but nobody is
using it. What NPA did was to withdraw
the license from the first people they gave
the franchise to. I don’t know if they have
given other people now, but I know they
withdrew the license.”
The transport expert observed that there
are other ports in Nigeria that are
underutilised, adding that they could
serve as an alternate port to Apapa to
solve the congestion issue promptly.
“Instead of being productive, we are
counter-productive and at the end of the
day, we complain about unemployment,
meanwhile, we created these problems for
ourselves.
“Let’s pray that Boko Haram does not
remember Apapa. If they do, it is only a
spark and Lagos will be in darkness. I am
not predicting any evil, I am just trying to
be frank with our system. We have
options that will really favour everybody,
but the whole thing is tilted towards a
political dimension,” he regretted.