THE URGENT NEED FOR DELTA STATE GOVERNMENT TO ADDRESS, CALL-TO-ORDER, RIVERINE COMMUNITIES STANDING AS HINDRANCES TO THE PATRONAGE OF PORTS IN DELTA STATE

With several calls by us, and well-meaning stakeholders in Delta State, on the urgent need for other Ports in the country, particularly the ones in the city of Warri and other ‘coastal areas’ of Delta State, to have their Ports functional again and operating at optimal level/usage, as an important revenue-yielding avenue for the development and growth of the State’s economy as well as that of the entire nation, we consider it expedient to also draw the attention of the Delta State Government and relevant State Authorities on the subject matter.

The subject issue is hinged on the fact that is has been discovered that Communities around the riverine areas leading to the Ports and different parts of Delta State, are part of the major problems that are daily contributing to the evident lack of patronage and passage of ships by ship owners into and out of Delta State. It was discovered that these riverine Communities, in the name of what they call “marching ground”, have been demanding outrageous amounts of money from every ship that passes these Communities to gets to its destinations within the State.

To make matters worse, it was also discovered that there is an obnoxious practice put in place by these riverine Communities; where each Community’s indigenous Captain must pilot every ship that intends to pass their Community to their boundary at a very high rate, which is non-negotiable. That means, if a ship, for example, has to pass through twenty riverine Communities to get to its destination, that ship Captain will not only pay each Communities’ marching ground levy, but the said ship will also be piloted by each Communities’ indigenous Captain to their boundary at a non-negotiable rate, from where the next Community in line will take over – until the said ship gets to its destination. This is said to be the evident practice in the Ports within Delta State; the Warri and the Koko Ports is a good example.

At the end of the day, ship Captains coming into Delta State through the State’s Ports will have to pay through their noses in the hands of these riverine Communities just to get to their destination. This unpopular and anti-investor-friendly practice by riverine Communities in Delta State, has obviously been discouraging ship owners/ship lines from patronizing or desiring to pilot their ships to Delta State for any sort of business activity. No ship owner or Captain will like this sort of practice by riverine Communities they pass through to get to their destination. It is like telling the driver of commercial transport company traveling from Warri to Lagos for instance, to pay ‘marching ground’ at different points, and to relinquish his bus to another indigenous driver at every Community boundary for the said bus to be driven (at a non-negotiable rate) to the next Community boundary, until the bus gets to its destination. This absolutely does not make any iota of sense.

These, and many more, are the sort of bad practices that are evident in Delta State, which the State Government and Delta State House of Assembly urgently needs to address, because they have the tendencies to obstruct economic growth and development towards Delta State. It makes business owners, prospective investors and developers to see Delta State and its people as ‘plagues-to-economic-business-growth.’ We cannot be seen to be using our own hands to destroy economic opportunities coming into the State which ought to empower our people.

We therefore urge the Delta State Government, relevant State Authorities and State lawmakers to take prompt steps towards addressing the observed practices by riverine Communities in the State. Perhaps, severe punitive measures should be put in place to discourage this bad practice that has been adversely affecting the Ports development and patronage in Delta State. This is where the Federal and State Government must come in to call a meeting of all riverine Communities’ stakeholders concerned to address this issue. And there should be a legislation in this regard to protect Captains and crew of ships, if it means involving the Nigerian Navy to protect ships and their Captains sailing in within the Niger Delta area, from being harassed by locals of riverine Communities. We ask that this issue should be given the urgent attention it deserves.

Zik Gbemre.

National Coordinator

Niger Delta Peace Coalition (NDPC)