Traffic Gridlock: Stakeholders Urge TTP To Automate E-Call Up System

Stakeholders at the recent Breakfast meeting organised by Maritime Reporters Association of Nigeria (MARAN) have called on the operators of Truck Transit Park (TTP) to automate the electronic call up (E-Call Up) system to achieve seamless entry of trucks into the ports.

The stakeholders who took time to brainstorm on the theme of event held at the Rockview Hotel Apapa, Lagos, stated that the automation process had become necessary considering the delay associated with the electronic call up system introduced four years ago.

According to the President Association of Maritime Truck Owners (AMATO) of Nigeria, Mr. Remi Ogungbemi, said that the process of entering into the ports has forced truckers to park on bridges and unauthorised places.

He noted that the only way to solve the problem of long queue of vehicles is to introduce complete automation and printing of tickets for presentation at the entry points.

The President posited that human contact should be reduced drastically so as to reduce corruption which has characterised the process.

Chairman Ports Consultative Council, Mr. Bolaji Somola, appreciated what the E-Call up system has done in terms of number of trucks that gained entry and exit into the port on a daily basis.

Previously, according to him, it took several weeks for trucks to gain entry into the ports.

Also speaking at the event, themed ‘Repositioning of E-Call up System for Optimal Performance,’ the President of MARAN, Mr. Godfrey Bivbere, said that the system has been worsened by corruption.

He stated categorically that the E-Call up system should not be seen as a source of revenue generation, adding that the system has increased cost instead of reducing cost.

According to him, “the increase in cost has a spiraling effect on the final cost of goods in the open market.”

He also identified activities of terminal operators and government agencies especially Lagos State government as part of the problem of the E-Call up system.

The President National Council of Managing Director of Licensed Customs Agents, Mr. Lucky Amiwero, stated that the problem started with the concession of the ports.

He said that the Bureau for Public Enterprises (BPE) got it wrong from the onset when the holding bays were concessioned to terminal operators.

He pointed out that the holding bays could have served the purpose of parking of trucks before entry into the ports.

Director of Operations Performance office of Truck Transit Park, Mr. Adetokunbo Ojo, said that as part of efforts to automate the E-Call-up, the park has made requisition for the introduction of E-tag which is awaiting the approval of Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA).