Isaac Anumihe
Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria (MWUN), at the weekend, suspended its plan to shut down the nation’s seaports over the failed portions of the road leading to Nigerian ports.
Recall that MWUN, last week, vowed to shut down the nation’s seaports over the Federal Government’s failure to fix port roads.
The union issued a seven-day ultimatum for the removal of abandoned trucks on the Oshodi-Apapa Road, which leads to Apapa and Tin-Can Ports. It demanded that roads to the seaports should be motorable and should the Federal Government fail to fix them within a specified time, the union would have no option than to embark on an indefinite strike, beginning from tomorrow, February 6, 2018.
Regretting the low business activities in and around the ports, the union found the situation unacceptable and vowed to demonstrate their grievances through strike.
“We are afraid that if things continue like this, it would lead to retrenchment of workers and we cannot afford to lose any of our members to joblessness,” it said.
It, therefore, declared: “If by Monday, February 5, 2018, the trucks are not removed and the craters and potholes filled, the union will withdraw all its members from ports nationwide.”
But speaking to newsmen, the President General of MWUN, Adewale Adeyanju, said the union has relaxed the ultimatum to shut the ports since the Federal Government has intervened.
Adeyanju said the government has called for an enlarged meeting with other industry stakeholders to find a lasting solution to the dilapidated port roads.
“The Federal Government has contacted us. They’re yet to send a letter to us but the meeting will involve all stakeholders in the maritime sector – the Federal Ministries of Transportation, Labour and Power, Works and Housing.
The Minister of Labour has intervened and sent a letter to us last week. We are only waiting for the date of the enlarged stakeholders meeting to be announced,” he said.
Adeyanju who said the union will always have the interest of the country at heart, urged the Federal Government to begin a palliative work on the roads before full rehabilitation.