Customs agents’, Truck owners suspend strike action at seaports with conditions
Indications have emerged that activities will resume at the Lagos ports from today, Thursday, following the announcement of the suspension of the two-day old strike action embarked upon by two leading stakeholder groups at the ports.
Whereas the Association of Maritime Truck Owners (AMATO) said on Tuesday that it has relaxed the withdrawal of service it embarked upon on Monday, the consortium of licenced Customs agents and freight forwarders’ yesterday evening joined in calling off the strike with a stern condition that should the agreements on the immediate repair of port access roads are reneged, they will go back to their trenches.
In an interview, the President of ANLCA, Prince Olayiwola Shittu said “we have heeded to the agreement signed with government agencies and called off the strike but may be forced to resume an indefinite action should any part of the deal be breached”.
It would be recalled that the President of ANLCA, Prince Olayiwola Shittu and founder of NAGAFF, Dr. Boniface Aniebonam met with the NPA Managing Director on Tuesday and after reviewing the outcome on Wednesday decided to suspend the action and watch the immediate repairs of the failed portions of the port access roads.
Checks by Business Hilights at both the Apapa Ports and Tin Can ports yesterday showed massive compliance to the strike action by all stakeholders’.
Explaining more on why his group suspended the strike, chairman AMATO, Chief Remi Ogungbemi said the decision to relax the strike was reached at a meeting between port stakeholders
According to him, “Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) said they will mobilise contractors to begin work on the bad portions of the road so we want to observe and assess the situation. If it is acceptable to us, we will then suspend it”.
“We have just relaxed the withdrawal of service to allow the management of NPA and Nigerian Shippers Council do what they say they want to do between now and tomorrow. We did not suspend the strike, we just relaxed it.
