Expert Frowns at Renewed Call for Border Closure Extension

Chinazor Megbolu

A Chieftain of National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders (NAGAFF), Dr Segun Musa has frowned over a call for indefinite border closure extension in some quarters.

While reacting to an online publication on Tuesday, where the President-General, Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria (MWUN), Comrade Adewale Adeyanju had called on the federal government to extend the land border closure indefinitely, Musa stated that continuous closure of the borders would add no value to the economy but instead destroy some sectors.

“Closure of the borders will add no value to our economy rather, it would kill some sectors for other sectors to grow.

“The land borders serve the same purposes as that of seaports and it is an economy on its own serving multiple investors in legitimate businesses.

“One would have expected a reputable organisation like MWUN to catalogue discuss in line with encouraging legitimate businesses coming through the land borders and restricts all forms of illegality that led to the closure,” Musa said.

He explained further that one cannot be praying for people’s businesses to die simply because he is booming.

According to him; “You cannot pray for other people’s businesses to die just because yours is booming.

“The three passages of economic integrations and migrations are the land borders, seaports and Airports and you cannot wish anyone to die for the others to thrive”.

On vehicles and other diverted imports mentioned in the report, Musa maintained he hopes the federal government would encourage the ports and terminal operators to be business-friendly in their charges and service delivery.

“I hope our government would encourage ports and the terminal operators to be more business-friendly in their charges and service delivery to encourage more patronage but definitely, continuous closure is a disaster for so many people into legitimate businesses, “he said.

It will be recalled that Adeyanju in the online publication, urged the federal government to shut down the land borders indefinitely as port operations and ships calling at the nation’s seaports have increased in the last 5 months.

Adeyanju also stated that diversion of cargo to neighbouring ports dropped and workers engagement in terms of labour productivity has increased significantly.