The Eto call-up system for trucks operating in the nation’s seaports will be under scrutiny as the umbrella body of journalists covering the maritime sector, the Maritime Reporters’ Association of Nigeria (MARAN) organizes a breakfast to dwell on it.
The scrutiny which is in line with its mandate of acting as a watchdog to the society will take a critical look at the challenges facing it and proffer solutions.
Slated for March 7, 2024 at Rockview Hotel, Apapa, Lagos, the epoch making event is expected to bring together various stakeholders and key operators in the industry under one roof.
Among other things, participants are expected to provide answers to a myriad of questions plaguing the Eto call up system.
They are also expected to identify the menace that has hindered effective transportations of cargoes, containers and products from the nations seaports.
The President MARAN, Mr Godfrey Bivbere in a statement obtained by Maritime Bits, lamented that despite the good intentions of the e-call up system, it has faced severe criticism, with some operators alleging that it has exacerbated the traffic crisis and facilitated corruption and extortion.
According to him, critical stakeholders have raised concerns that the platform had deviated from its original purpose and turned into a source of revenue generation and that the port environment has returned to the pre-Hadiza Bala-Usman era.
To this effect, he disclosed that the association focused on playing its constitutional role of being a watchdog and an agenda-setting body for the government and other stakeholders effectively; will organize a breakfast meeting to address these concerns.
Continuing, he said: “Topical issues that will be discussed at the meeting include the efforts that the government through agencies like the Nigerian Ports Authority, has taken to combat these challenges, as well as the role that can be played by stakeholders. Additionally, the introduction of e-tag trucks will also be discussed as one of the viable solutions.”
Many stakeholders in the maritime industry are expected to attend the breakfast meeting. They include the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Alhaji Adegboyega Isiaka Oyetola; Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA); Nigerian Shippers’ Council; Nigeria Customs Service (NCS); shipping companies and terminal operators.
Others are the Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria (MWUN); Truck Transit Parks (PSTT); truckers’ associations like Lagos State Truck and Cargo Operators Committee (LASTCOC), Nigeria Association of Road Transport Owners (NARTO), Association of Maritime Truck Owners (AMATO), and the Nexus Association of Maritime Transport Operators (NAMTOP).
The Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA) and the National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders (NAGAFF) are also expected to be participants at the breakfast meeting.
