‘Cargo congestion looms as seaports remain shut’

Mr Emeka Ewnelu, the Chairman, Apapa Chapter of National Council of Managing Directors of Licensed Customs Agents (NCMDLCA), on Sunday expressed concern over the continued closure of Nigeria seaports due to the ongoing strike.

Ewnelu, also a freight forwarder, said that cargo congestion would worsen at Apapa and the Tin Can ports.

Ewnelu, who spoke to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos, said that massive cargo pile-up might be imminent as vessels continued to berth at Nigerian ports in spite of the strike.

“The Lagos ports, accounting for over 85 per cent of container traffic as well as wet and dry bulk cargo, have remain locked.

“The Berthing Committe that holds daily meetings on Monday to Friday to allocate berth space to vessels arriving at the nation’s waters has failed to meet too,’’ the chairman said.

According to him, vessels cannot berth at the moment as the Customs Processing Centre is also under lock and key due to the strike.

Ewnelu said that the situation would end up compounding the already precarious state of the two Lagos ports.

He appealed to the Federal Government and the NLC to save the shipping public more hassles by resolving the crisis on time. (NAN)