FG grants two port concessionaires five-year extension

The National Council on Privatization has approved the extension of concession granted two port concessionaires for another five years.
The concessionaires are Joseph Dam Port Services that controls Tin Can Island and Five Star Logistics, handling the rural terminals on Tin Can Island, both in Lagos State.
Briefing State House correspondents after the first NCP meeting in 2014, presided over by Vice President Namadi Sambo, the Director General of the Bureau of Public Enterprises, Benjamin Dikki, said the approval was granted following application by the concessionaires.
Justifying the extension granted, Dikki stated: “The Council considered the application of Joseph Dam Port Services Nigeria Limited for the concession of ‎Tin Can Island Port for the extension of the lease period.
“When the lease was granted to Joseph Dam, there was a court case that restrained Joseph Dam from taking over and conducting its obligations of the concessioned contract.
“And the case dragged on for over four years.
“So Council considered the application and reviewed the issues and granted an extension of the lease period by five years for Joseph Dam Port Services Limited in respect of Tin Can Island Ports Lagos.
“The second company, whose issues were ‎reviewed also, is Five Star Logistics, who are handling the concession of the rural terminals on Tin Can Island.
“There were other obligations that government was committed to like dredging of the ports, mending of some of the collapsed parts of the ports which have not been done and this has extensively restricted the area of operation off the concessionaire.
“The National Council of Privatization reviewed the matter holistically and has graciously granted a five-year extension to Five Star Logistics in respect of the rural terminals in Tin Can Island.”
Also, Council, according to the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Power, Godsknow Igali, who is a member of the NCP, said BPE has been directed to “move immediately with the relevant MDAs to look into all kinds of issues that have come up and settle not just the power sector issues that are outstanding but other sectors that are outstanding”.
Consequently, the BPE would look into other residual issues that need verification and capturing of biometrics, particularly with pensioners of PHCN, who were not part of the immediate privatization exercise but are genuine PHCN workers who have not been paid their pensions.
Igali said: “BPE reported along with the technical committee, which I chair, that we are now in the process of doing biometric capture‎ of any PHCN worker who even though was not recently served but in the past who has not been paid his pensions.
“We have captured about 50 per cent of them and after a meeting with the National Union of Pensioners by the BPE, it was reported that we are now going to work with National Union of Pensioners to make sure that their pension allowance is paid after verification and they have been captured.
“Their money is kept in the Central Bank to ‎make sure they are paid after the verification exercise.”