*** Segun MUSA Advices Government
The need to return to the usage of pipelines as the easiest and fastest mode of Petroleum Products transportation has been emphasized in Lagos.
The advice came from a renowned stakeholder in the Transportation and Logistics sector of the economy and Chairman, Widescope Logistics Services Limited, Dr. Segun Musa, while interacting with members of the Maritime Reporters Association of Nigeria, MARAN, in Lagos.
Speaking on the challenges of perennial traffic bottlenecks on the ports access roads, falling tankers on other vehicles and it’s resultant threats to lives as well as the constant damage to the roads infrastructure, all caused by the daily lining up, of the roads with hundreds of truck and tankers, Dr.Musa explained that reverting to the usage of pipelines for the transportation of products is a better option at any given time.
He however expressed regrets over the abandonment of the pipelines over time, noting that the result of that neglect, is the enormous amount of tankers seen everywhere on the port access roads and their threats to timely mobility of goods and humans.
He explained further that if pipelines are being used, the issues of roads traffic and the others challenges like accidents and tankers explosions would become a thing of the past.
“That is the essence of pipelines transportation, the only area we will see tankers will be, in the area of products distribution within the corridor.Tankers are not meant to to move products from Lagos to Abuja, no!, it supposed to be pipelines, same way railway supposed to carry huge volume of cargo while haulage ensures distribution”.
Dr. Musa said, globally, only haulage is designed to move long distances because it is most expensive but rail has the capacity to move a large volume of cargo and at a reasonable costs.
He said, once he had countered the suggestion that, with the volume of haulage available in the sector, Nigeria can pilot the Inland Containers Depots, ICD’s, by letting the people know that, the only thing that can help pilot the ICD’s, is the rail.
“If you use haulage to pilot the ICD’s, the essence of the ICD’s would be defeated, when you deploy haulage, it’s going to come at a premium cost and you won’t even bother to use the ICD’s again because it will be more expensive than for you to clear in the North and transport it down your destination”.
Talking about the dwindling nature of Courier Service in the country, Dr Musa decried the fact that, it’s one sector that is not receiving more attention.
He reminisced about the good old days of NIPOST, as the only source of parcels movement compared to the present DHL, UPS, FEDEX and the others thus asking a thousand dollars question.
“Who is regulating them, how many big Actors are making waves in the Courier sector in Nigeria?”.
The number, according to him, is very minimal and NIPOST is gone, thus expressing the hope that if government cannot run the Agency, they should sell it, as there are a thousand and one Investors who are willing to buy it, even as he also suggested that, aside selling the Agency, government should encourage more indigenous Players who may wish to invest in the Courier Service sub sector.
The Chairman, Widescope Logistics and Transport, stated that Nigeria cannot afford to allow foreign participants to dominate the Courier sector in the country as it’s not done in other countries.
“When we are talking about no jobs, but we have a lot of people who are trained, why can’t capacity be built somewhere for them to be able to compete favourably”.
Dr Musa was of the opinion that allowing foreigners to dominate every sector of the nation’s economy, like the Courier Services, and the others, is detrimental to economic growth, and that is not allowed elsewhere and Nigeria should not be the only exception.
He therefore solicited the need to encourage Nigerian players in those sub sectors, to take chances and key in and make their marks towards growing the economy rather than continuous capital flights enjoyed by foreign dominance in the Nigerian economy.
