Chairman of ANLCA, Onne Seaport chapter, Chief Ifeanyi Isikaku (Onwa), has said that the maritime activities going on at Onne Seaport, Rivers State, have been underreported by maritime media practitioners covering the port.
The Chairman, who made the disclosure in an interactive meeting with maritime media practitioners operating at the Eastern Zone on the 28th of May, 2025 at ANLCA Secretariat, Onne; said that the issue of Onne Seaport that has about 16.4 draft and that of Lekki Deep Seaport in Lagos State that has about 16.9 draft is being approved for dredging by the Federal Government, while Onne Seaport, which has been operational before that of Lekki Deep Seaport, is yet to be attended to.
Chief Isikaku was of the view that such burning issue(s), as well as the activities of the Nigeria Customs Service and other agencies operating at Onne Seaport, are supposed to be on the front covers of the publications of the maritime media practitioners, who are mostly publishers.
The ANLCA chapter chairman further disclosed that some persons that visits Onne Seaport once in a while, have continued in demarketing the seaport, citing freight differential, insecurity and low activities at the port, among others.
He described the aforementioned unfounded allegations as baseless, adding that people like him that relates to the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), DSS, Terminal Operators and other agencies at the port, are the ones that can give correct and adequate information on what is happening at the port on daily basis.
Speaking on the currently launched B’Odogwu system by the Nigeria Customs Service, Onne Area II Command, Chief Isikaku described the exercise as a right step in the right direction.
He added that the B’Odogwu system launch, which they witnessed as freight forwarders, will enhance the seamless operation of their jobs, adding that a freight forwarder can use his android phone to carry out his job at any point, provided the Customs agent has an internet facility on his laptop or mobile phone.
He opined that the B’Odogwu exercise will provide faster and efficient service delivery to both the Customs and freight forwarders, compared to the previous services of Nigeria Integrated Customs Information System (NICISS II).
On the E-callup exercise by the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) at Onne Seaport, Chief Isikaku opined that the exercise was opposed by members of ANLCA, based on the issue of congestion, among others
He, in the meantime, called on the management of NPA to carry out more stakeholders’ engagements, before kick-starting the exercise, which NPA said will provide for security of trucks and safety of cargos leaving and entering the port, and as well, provide accommodation for drivers and car maintenance workshops for fixing of faulty trucks, among others.
The Truck Bay facility according to NPA, will provide for standard best practices, as witnessed all over the world, thereby, reducing road congestion and ensuring adequate monitoring of to and fro movements of trucks at Onne Seaport.
Responding on the inability of Port Terminals and other agencies at the port, to invite maritime media practitioners at the Eastern Zone to their events, Chief Isikaku promised to reach out to the relevant agencies through their PROs to resolve the issue, as raised.
He, in the meantime, urged the maritime media practitioners to extend their reportage on the activities of ANLCA National Executive Committee (NECOM) and the giant achievements of its National President, Mr. Emenike Kingsley Nwokeoji, who is about to celebrate his 2 years in office, in the areas of: peace, unity and conduct of free and fair chapters’ elections across the zones, among others.
