Bimbola Oyesola and Steve Agbota

Maritime Workers yesterday issued a 21-day ultimatum to the Federal Government and Lagos State Government to prevail upon the shipping lines causing gridlock on Oshodi-Apapa Expressway to withdraw their trucks, failure which the union would embark on industrial action. The workers under the umbrella of the Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria (MWUN) listed the shipping companies to include MAERSK LINE, PIL, MSC and MOL.

According to MWUN President, Adewale Adeyanju, these shipping companies deliberately keep the trucks and their laden containers as means of attracting demurrage payment daily from the union’s already over burdened members, truck owners and their drivers.

“As a major stakeholder in the Maritime sector, whose members and activities have been negatively affected by the gridlock on the access roads to the ports, especially in Tin-Can and Apapa ports, we have painstakingly studied the causes of the gridlock and have identified the shipping companies as responsible for the gridlock,” he said.

He stated that Nigerians, especially Lagosians, are living witnesses to the continuous pains, danger, suffering, and intractable gridlock that heavy duty trucks have been causing over the years on the Oshodi-Apapa Expressway with its negative economic consequences, stating that the workers cannot continue like this.

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He noted that they operate along Oshodi-Apapa Expressway and do not have holding bays in absolute disregard to regulations and standards which provide that a shipping company must have a holding bay before going operational. 

He lamented that by their action, the companies have converted the major express road to their holding bays and packing lots thereby hindering free flow of traffic.

He said: “We are using this medium to call on the Federal Government to call these companies to order and compel them to stop using their private businesses to cause public nuisance.

“If at the end of the 21-day notice, the appropriate government agencies fail to address our demand, the union shall have no other option than to take appropriate and necessary industrial action to protect our members and other road users such as truck owners, drivers and the public at large.” 

Adeyanju said that, as a responsible social partner, the union urged all concerned government regulatory agencies to take urgent action and call the aforementioned companies to order, for the betterment of Nigerians, port users and to forestall any action by MWUN members.