Bala-Usman: NPA Will Not Reverse Cancelation of $133.28M SAA Fees

The Managing Director of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA),
Hadiza Bala-Usman has said the agency will not be intimidated by
anyone as regards its withdrawal of support to the Secure Anchorage
Area (SAA).

Bala-Usman, who disclosed this in a chat with newsmen during the
commemoration of the World Anti-Corruption Day in Lagos, recently,
said the agency would stand firm on its position and the legality
of what it has done.

Concerned about threat to national security and the cost of
doing business at the country’s seaport, the Nigerian Ports
Authority recently notified the Nigerian Navy of its decision to
dismantle the Secure Anchorage Area, operated on behalf of the Navy
by a private company, OMS Limited.

NPA had insisted that the security of the country’s waterways
was the statutory responsibility of the Nigerian Maritime
Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Marine Police, and
Nigerian Navy, which must all ensure safe and secure Nigeria
territorial waters.

A Secure Anchorage Area is an area outside the Lagos port that
the Nigerian Navy, with a private company, has defined as a secure
place where vessels can anchor safely from the threat of pirate
attack.

According to the NPA boss, “We believe that we have to make our
ports competitive, we have to reduce the cost of doing business in
our ports and by so doing we stand by to say that we reaffirm that
vessels coming into Nigeria should not be paying private companies
to for any form of security.”

“Nigerian Navy and indeed NIMASA should provide the requisite
security required as entrenched in the statutes of the Maritime
sector,” she said

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in
partnership with the NPA led various stakeholders and civil society
groups on a two-kilometre awareness walk against corruption as part
of the celebration of World Anti-Corruption Day.

The walk was led by the Zonal Head of the anti-corruption
agency, Mr. Mohammed Rabo and Bala-Usman.
Bala-Usman, said everyone has to work together to eradicate
corruption in the country stressing that it would be in the
interest of all Nigerians to eradicate corruption.

“I believe that we have to work together and strengthen
collaboration against corruption. I am here as a representative of
the maritime industry. We believe that there is a need to entrench
transparency and accountability across the board in all our
operations. We believe that there is a need to entrench across the
board what is required for integrity and accountability,” she
said.

Speaking to newsmen, Rabo submitted that the effect of
corruption permeates every sector and the challenge therefore calls
for concerted efforts.