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By Joel Anekwe
The Dockworkers branch of the Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria (MWUN) at the Rivers Port, Tuesday staged a peacefully protest in Port Harcourt calling on the Federal Government to wade into the crisis rocking the industrial relations between the Nigeria Ports Authority and one of the terminal operators at the port, Bua Ports and Terminals Ltd.
The protesting workers carried several placards some of which read: ‘We are Nigerians, don’t frustrate Nigerian businessmen;’ ‘We are dock workers and we want work;’ ‘Injury to one is injury to all;’ ‘Bua Terminal is our source of livelihood; we don’t have any business other than ship work.’
Addressing the workers, a trustee of the Dockworkers branch of the Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria, Comrade Waite Harry, called on the Federal Government to wade into the crises and resolve all contending issues so that work could resume at the Bua terminal.
He stated that for about two months, his workers had been sent out of job as a result of the issue between NPA and Bua Ports and Terminals Ltd, adding that efforts by his officials to intervene and reconcile the misunderstanding proved abortive.
‘’All efforts to know or understand what is happening between NPA and BUA Ports and Terminal proved abortive, nobody called our headquarters to tell them what is happening,’’ he stated.
Stressing that “on our own we have tried to get to the root of the matter between them, but we cannot get any result,” Harry said that the workers had to resort to the peaceful protest since they could not get result from the intervention of their officials in the matter, adding that the protest was geared towards letting the world know of the issue on ground.
“The officials have intervened in the case, we intervened and discovered that the problem is between NPA and Bua Ports and Terminals, we gave them time to resolve but they refused to settle.
“What we are saying is that whatever issue they have should not affect workers, vessels should berth for workers to work because they are family members,’’ Harry stressed.
The district chairman, Port Harcourt Ports Dock workers branch, Tony Nwokocha, said that there were many vessels at the Fairway buoy ready to berth at Bua Ports and Terminals, but because of the issue they could not come.
He called on both parties to resolve their differences, adding that they should allow vessels to berth for workers to work to get money to feed their families.
Nwokocha noted that the face-off between NPA and Bua had caused untold hardship on the dock workers, noting that the problem was not caused by the workers.
‘’School has resumed, parents will buy books, pay school fees, sew new uniforms and take general care of their families, where will they get money to do all these,” he asked.
He called on the Federal Government to resolve the issue between Bua Ports and Terminals and NPA.
The district chairman noted that dock workers were casual workers, adding that they earn their pay on daily basis.