The League of Maritime Editors, LOME, has criticised Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu over remarks attributed to him regarding the Nigerian Ports Authority’s, NPA, efforts to expand activities at ports in the South-East and South-South.
The NPA has been promoting increased patronage at the Warri Port in Delta State, Onne Port in Rivers State and the Calabar Port in Cross River State as part of its strategy to decongest the heavily burdened Lagos ports, Apapa and Tin Can Island.
Years of congestion at the Lagos ports had prompted the introduction of the electronic call-up system to manage traffic.
However, in a statement jointly signed by LOME President, Mrs Remi Itie, and Secretary General, Mr Felix Kumuyi, the group faulted the governor’s alleged opposition to the development of other regional ports.
The editors described Sanwo-Olu’s position as an attempt to preserve Lagos’ dominance at the expense of national economic growth.
They argued that the governor’s stance amounted to an unnecessary intrusion into the operational responsibilities of the NPA and a move capable of undermining the development of ports outside Lagos.
Part of the statement read: “The League of Maritime Editors, LOME, is deeply concerned by Governor Sanwo-Olu’s comments. The notion that Lagos should remain Nigeria’s sole commercial gateway must be challenged and re-evaluated.
“Nigeria is a federation, not a private enclave. The insistence that port operations must remain concentrated in Lagos is both outdated and counterproductive.
“Years of excessive reliance on Apapa and Tin Can ports have led to crippling gridlock, corruption, inefficiency and the collapse of traffic management systems.
“These problems are not the creation of the NPA but a reflection of Lagos’ inability to effectively manage its infrastructure and regulatory framework.
“To oppose the expansion of port activities to Warri, Onne, or Calabar is to hold the Nigerian economy hostage to Lagos’ structural limitations. Fairness and economic balance demand port decentralisation.”
LOME maintained that decentralising port operations would not only promote regional development but also strengthen the country’s overall maritime sector.
