The presidential candidate of the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP), Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, has reiterated the need for the flexibility of port infrastructures in an increasing population, to enhance sustainability.
He bemoaned the failure of the port industry in emulating the legacy of the Nigerian National Shipping Line (NNSL) to promote Nigerian heritage.
The senator, speaking at the unveiling of the NNPP maritime agenda in Ikeja, said his party would ensure that the Customs and other regulatory agencies were made to perform efficiently, while checking corrupt practices in the system.
He added: “Our government will look at the possibility of constructing a rail line from Apapa and Tincan Island ports to a dry port outside Lagos where arrived goods should be domiciled for clearance, in order to stop heavy trucks from causing gridlock in Lagos.”
A lecturer at Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ago-Iwoye, Ogun State, Prof. Bamidele Badejo, in his lead presentation on maritime agenda, condemned the dilapidated state of the sector and its challenges.