By Kenneth Jukpor
The Director General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) Dr. Dakuku Peterside has revealed the agency’s plan to begin collection of 0.5% stevedoring charges on all oil and gas cargoes.
The NIMASA boss made this confirmation in reaction to a question thrown at him during the recent 2017 OTL Africa Downstream conference and exhibition in Lagos.
Dakuku stated that the agency was within its rights to begin the collection of the charge even as he posited that non-collection of the fees in the past was as a result of negligence of the agency, a situation he intends to correct.
“There is a general conversation that NIMASA wants to start collecting 0.5% stevedoring charges. Yes! It is a fact. It is backed by law and the agency’s regulations. If the previous administrations did not impose it in the past, it must have been negligence on our part. Right now we are going to enforce this in the most humanly manner. It is not against the law”, Dakuku said.
Meanwhile, in another development, the President General of the Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria, Comrade Adewale Adeyanju has commended the Management of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) led by Dr. Dakuku Peterside for creating the platform for sustained labour stability in the entire maritime sector.
Comrade Adeyanju gave this commendation when members of the Union’s National Officers paid a courtesy visit to the NIMASA Management in Lagos, saying that as soon as the Agency midwifed and ensured compliance to the National Judicial Industrial Council (NJIC) agreement there has been no rift in the industry.
“NIMASA has ensured that there is mutual understanding between workers and terminal operators. The era of picketing is over, we are indeed very grateful to Dr. Peterside and his management team for creating stability at our ports, terminals and jetties”.
While speaking at the event Dr. Dakuku Peterside assured the Nigerian Maritime Workers that the Agency would not shy away from its roles and responsibilities in ensuring that their welfare is guaranteed, as the growth and development of the sector depends on their participation and contributions.
The Director General further reiterated the agency’s commitment to engaging in meaningful and promising programmes geared towards Maritime Workers welfare, even as he called on the union members to always apply dialogue when addressing issues and shun confrontation, which he noted to be counterproductive in any engagement or input.
In his words, “Let me assure you that NIMASA is a home to every maritime worker. From the advent of this Administration, we have noted that you believe in dialogue and not confrontation in dealing with issues as it pertains to our operational relationship. We believe that human element is the greatest asset in our quest to ensure the growth and development of our maritime sector. Without human element our equipment and other resources are useless”
Speaking further, Dr. Peterside acknowledged the complementary and symbiotic roles Maritime Workers, Seafarers and Dockworkers play in the life of any nation’s maritime sector and pledged to deploy resources within the Agency’s enabling capabilities to support the growth of the nation’s human maritime capacity.
“MWUN leadership have clearly stated that Maritime workers prefer engagement to confrontation, and we all know that confrontation is not usually the best approach. We know that when we engage, we understand each other better. I am glad that you have chosen that approach because I believe it is the way to go and the way to achieve result and enjoy an era of peace and stability in the sector where we work. Our new capacity development initiatives are now tailored towards growing human capacity in the sector for immediate employment”, Dr. Peterside said.
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