Senior and junior employees of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) has on Monday, March 18, 2024 issued a seven-day ultimatum to the Federal Government(FG) to reverse the presidential directive on automatic deduction of 50 per cent from its internally generated revenue (IGR) or they would shut down the ports.

This was disclosed in a letter signed by the Senior Staff Association of Statutory Corporation and Government Owned Companies (SSASCGOC) and Maritime Workers’ Union of Nigeria (MWUN).

The workers sought urgent reversal of the policy, adding that if not curtailed, it would lead to irreversible industrial action and closure of the business at the ports.

Parts of the letter read: “We wish to reiterate our position as stated in our letter reference above thus:

“The NPA, as the employer of workers who are our members, is self-funded and receives zero allocation from the government budget. This means that it needs to retain most, if not all, of the funds it generates in order to be able to continue to effectively discharge its duties, which include constant dredging of our Port; regular maintenance of our Quay aprons; maintenance of Ports, Jetties, and Terminals; manpower development and discharge of corporate social responsibilities (CSR).

“Without prejudice to the intentions behind the formation of policies to raise revenue for the Federal Government, it must be said that it is not advisable to introduce extractive policies to self-funding specialised entities as they will be subjected to unnecessary hardship and avoidable disruption of processes due to the revenue disruptions."

BEB