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The Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria (MWUN) has denied the allegation of its mounting illegal toll points at the ports, stating that it was “a deliberate lie, designed to malign our good image.”
The union, in a statement signed by the secretary-general, Felix Akingboye, said the accusation from the Council of Maritime Trade Unions and Associations (COMTUA), alleging that the union mounted some 20 illegal toll points within a distance of about 1,000 metres was a lie.
The union, referring to a publication (not Daily Sun), said, ordinarily, MWUN would not join issues with COMTUA, but it was compelled by the manipulative and malicious lies put forth into public space by the leadership of the association to react.
The union said it was a former member of the association but pulled out due to breach of COMTUA’s memorandum of understanding.
The secretary-general alleged that, since MWUN pulled out, the association’s leadership has resorted to blackmail against the union, threats to members, security agents and government alike.
“MWUN is a partner in growing our economy and ensuring peace in all our ports, terminals, jetties and oil and gas platforms, which informs our unblemished decade-long record of maintaining industrial peace in the maritime sector,” the MWUN scribe said, adding that the union’s record was in the public space for all to see.
He stated that accusing the union of mounting “tolls of 20 checkpoints from Coconut Bus top to Tincan Island Gate — a distance of about 1,000m, is a figment of myopic imagination”.
He stated, “Com. (Prince) Dr. Adeyanju Adewale, president-general, MWUN, has over the years built a reputation based on probity and proper public service, he has contributed in no small measure to the growth, sustenance and development of the maritime sector.”
The secretary-general reasoned that this could be attested to by the myriads of accolades conferred on him by government and other relevant stakeholders in the maritime industry, adding that “to drag his name into this is wicked and unfortunate.”
He added, “For the sake of clarity, MWUN confines its activities to areas clearly within its jurisdictional scope, one of which is haulage, ably superintended by one of our highly trained and respected union officials, Com. Taofeek Shorinola.
“Our well-trained members will and have not in any circumstance gone against the law, as they ply their trade within the exclusive economic zone of the ports and cannot be found on the roads outside the port vicinity.”
