NPA Commences Employment Exercise …Employs over 300 Staff

Zion Olalekan

The Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) has commenced a fresh round of employment exercise with examination conducted for over 300 staff already employed.

This is even as the Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria (MWUN) raised fresh alarm, saying that not less than 200 jetties across the country are currently unmanned and thereby posts security risk to the nation.

Speaking with journalists in Lagos recently, NPA Branch President of MWUN, Comrade Ifeayin Mazeli blamed the situation at the jetties to lack of staff employment exercise into NPA within the past decade. He said that currently, the NPA is operating an inverted pyramid structure whereby the senior staff are more than the junior staff.

Mazeli said that in the ongoing recruitment exercise into the NPA, more than 300 people have so far been employed.

The unionist, however, commended the Managing Director of NPA, Hadiza Bala Usman, saying that she has done excellently well within her two years in office.

Said he: “We have more than 200 jetties unmanned, if you look at the concessionaires, there is no NPA staff to monitor whatever they are bringing into the country, so even when cargoes are declared lower than what was imported, you have to accept whatever figure they give you because you don’t have your people there to ascertain the actual figure.

“This is the job of the junior workers, and in a situation where you have more senior workers than the junior ones, then it is not the best.

“So far, the last figure I am aware of is 300, myself and the senior staff president were there to address them in ASCON some few weeks ago. They just started working, but we are meeting with management to get the actual figure, as president of the workers, I need to know the number of my members.

“Much as we welcome the employment exercise going on, let it be used to correct the anomaly. If you look at the system now, we are not maintaining a pyramid structure, we have a situation where the up is heavier than the down, the officer cadre is heavier than the junior staff cadre that is doing the work. As much as there is a window of employment now, we are saying that we should use the opportunity to correct the anomaly.”

Comrade Mazeli noted that the issue of promotion into NPA in the past was an herculean task, but that since Hadiza came on board, three promotion examinations have been conducted and promotion given as at when due to those qualified.

He said that before the arrival of Hadiza, promotion was done in a wrong way and this was largely responsible for the inverted pyramid structure in the agency.

In his words: “Before now, you can see someone employed just yesterday being promoted above somebody that has been here for 10 years and even with the best certificate. She has set up a committee to correct the problems, the wrong promotions were part of the reasons why the top is heavier.

“This employment is a welcome development and we really applaud the management of Nigerian Ports Authority for this good gestures and we are extending our gratitude to the Federal Government for giving her the permission.

“I have been saying it and I will keep saying it that we have never had it this good, since she came into office, there has been a lot of significant changes, especially in the area of workers welfare, productivity base of the organization.

“We are partners in progress and not an opposition party, when someone does well, we must say it.”