By Tony Iyare
I wish to warmly applaud all those responsible for the vision to build the Lekki Deep Sea Port and create another corridor for maritime cargo. I’m so elated that it hopes to generate about 170,000 direct and indirect jobs when fully commissioned. I equally wish to salute the initiative of also building the Badagry Port.
Although these ports were conceived to ease the pressure on the Apapa and Tin Can Island Ports, I doubt whether we’ve done enough homework to ensure that we do not repeat the problems of Apapa.
When the Colonial Government built the Apapa Port, it ensured it was well connected via a road and rail transport hub to the major industrial clusters in Apapa, Iganmu, Ilupeju and Ikeja and other parts of the country.
That was why many of the companies located around these industrial clusters like Flour Mills, Nigerian Breweries, Guiness and even the Water Works in Iju had rail lines linking directly to their factories which ensured that their cargo and other supplies were delivered seamlessly.
Unfortunately the Tin Can Island Port was built by the Obasanjo government in the 70s without making sure it was properly aligned with the rail connection thereby impacting undue pressure on the roads as the emphasis now shifted to moving a large chunk of cargo by trucks.
That we also allowed the rail lines including those leading to the industrial clusters become decrepit led to too much weight on the roads and bridges particularly leading to Apapa rendering them into shreds.
At least going by how the heavy duty trucks have now made Apapa virtually inaccessible, we must have a more aggressive rail plan for both the Lekki and Badagry Ports to avert the looming hell that may face commuters in those corridors once they become operational.
For these ports to be sustainable, there must be a plan for instance to link them to the envisaged Lagos-Calabar rail line which is expected to connect Benin, Onitsha, Warri, Port Harcourt and Calabar.
Ditto for the Lagos – Kano rail lines that will ensure that the massive cargo from these ports are delivered to Sagamu, Ifo, Abeokuta, Ibadan, Oshogbo, Ilorin, Jebba, Kaduna, Kano, Jos and up to Maiduguri.
We need to appreciate that any modern economy that is not hinged on the massive movement of people and cargo via rail lines cannot be taken seriously. It’s also important that we save our roads from the debilitating impact of heavy duty trucks.