Shipping Position
COMTUA Is Intact; Nobody Has Dissolved It, Says National President.
By Izuchukwu Ozoemena
National President, Council of Maritime Truck Unions Associations (COMTUA), Comrade Adeyinka Aroyewun, has debunked the notion those he called detractors are bandying that the coalition is in disarray. Aroyewun stated this, Tuesday, during an online personality round- table organized in Lagos by the Maritime Reporters’ Association of Nigeria, MARAN. He urged members of the public to disregard the alleged story of dissolution as it exists only in the imagination of people who, haven failed in the bid to have their way, have resorted to a campaign of calumny against the maritime truckers group.
He said that as a body, COMTUA noticed certain anomalies in how the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) was operating the Truck Transit Parks (TTP) and the trucks electronic call-up system (Eto) and raised alarm. Those who individually benefited from the anomalies associated with these systems protested because the association’s stance prevented them from achieving their selfish objectives, hence the resort to blackmail.
Even a year after coming on-board November 25, 2021, he explained, some people who claimed to be founding fathers have not seen the need to relinquish leadership responsibilities to the current leadership under him.
He referred to the issue of bank account and said: “For example, COMTUA has only one account domiciled with Access Bank. The signatories to that account happened to be the first BOT Chairman of the collaboration in the person of Comrade Aloga Ogbogo who is currently the Executive Secretary of NARTO, the current President General, Maritime Workers’ Union, who is also the co-Chairman of the BOT of COMTUA since 2020 and the third signatory is Otunba Olaleye Thompson who was then the President. The last signatory was Madam Folake George who was the Director of Finance.
“The moment the baton of leadership changed since November 25, 2021, none of these four signatories have voluntarily or otherwise released their signatures for the mandate to change. As I speak with you, we have not been able to access COMTUA’s account as executives in the last one and half years of our administration.
Secondly, the so-called elders of the collaboration, in the name of the collaboration, got garages, parks and pregate garages for themselves under TTP. The moment COMTUA began to see inadequacies in Eto and TTP arrangement and started challenging these inadequacies, they became uncomfortable.
“These our so-called founding fathers who have been profiting directly or indirectly from TTP legitimately or illegitimately now feel COMTUA is becoming too powerful for them and it is going to cause problem for them. They felt after submitting their resignation letters three years ago, two years ago, last year and some this year, they can come back to say that they have dissolved COMTUA.”
He was assertive that what appeared as disagreements in the the organization had since been resolved by the members. COMTUA never had any problems among individual component associations.
“Whoever are speaking against COMTUA are no longer members of COMTUA. So, we want the media and the general public to disregard any campaign of calumny as it stands now because COMTUA does not have any problem as a collaboration.
“However, we should not fail to remember that there is freedom of association. You can be in or out of an association at will and since some people have chosen to be out of the association and they have followed due process by writing officially to dissociate themselves from the association. It is okay, it has been accepted. That has been settled internally. Every other issue that we have among ourselves has been resolved internally and we will continue to do that because we have our internal mechanism to resolve conflicts.
“The noise you are hearing now is from people that are no longer members of the collaboration and are determined to bring the name and integrity of the association to disrepute. The association will not fold its hands and look at them to engage in a campaign of calumny against the association. Beyond that, if they fail to desist from their conduct, the association will not hesitate to take a legal action against them.
Aroyewun declared that an association, COMTUA is actually a pressure group speaking in favour of or against the policies of government.
“That we have been doing. Some people do not see any reason for us to do that and only if they are members of the association and they are able to convince us against what we are doing. We don’t have any issue among ourselves except for people who are no longer members of the collaboration.”
On allegation of lack of leadership trust, the reason the Maritime Workers’ Union of Nigeria (MWUN) and the National Union of Road Transport Workers, (NURTW) allegedly left the Council, he insisted that there was never a time the issue of trust has come up in COMTUA. There has never been any case of financial misappropriation or criminal allegation.
“COMTUA does not have any issue of trust and, let me correct you, Maritime Workers’ Union pulled out in 2021 and that was under the administration of Otunba Olaleye Thompson. However, the Maritime Workers’ Union pulled out basically because they are actually not transporters; they are dockworkers, seafarers, NPA employees and so on. They came into this collaboration on the ground that they were going to strengthen us whenever we are going to make demands from the government such that they will also embark on industrial action whenever we will be withdrawing our services.
Aroyewun regretted that on several occasions when the Council demanded for them to give support to a legitimate cause, they were unable to provide it because of their relationship with the Nigeria Ports Authority and their status as NPA employees.
“They often do not cooperate with us when we have demands to make of NPA. However, we were managing the relationship even though I was not the president at that time. For example, we wrote to NPA demanding to know why the electronic call-up regime is not functioning properly. We expected the Maritime Workers’ Union, as decided in the meeting, to be part of signatories to this letter, but the President of the Maritime Workers Union declined his signature.
“There was never a time the NURTW withdrew their membership of COMTUA. The present co-Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Council of Maritime Transport Unions and Associations is Prof. Ibikunle Baruwa who is the President of NURTW.
COMTUA does not have any issue of trust with anybody. There is nothing like financial misappropriation in COMTUA; there is nothing like criminal allegations in COMTUA. Those that actually withdrew their membership from COMTUA have their personal reasons for doing so and we don’t have a problem with that as we have moved on.
As about four associations have withdrawn their membership of the collaboration, he stated, six more associations have applied and are now members of COMTUA.
“We have the Green Initiative, Maritime Truck Drivers, the Lekki Fertilizer Group, the Arewa Group, the Marine Beach operators, Amuwo-Odofin Truck Operators and the rest of them. So, the collaboration is ongoing and we are waxing stronger and that is why you are seeing everybody showing concern about the existence of COMTUA. If COMTUA had issues, nobody would want to associate with it.”
Aroyewun recalled that before COMTUA came into existence, the maritime transportation industry had been battling with a lot of issues. These included traffic congestion and the challenges of returning empty containers.
“It was through COMTUA that the introduction of holding bays where our members do not have where to return empty containers to the port was actualized. What we do now is to return empty containers to the holding bays. It has saved the industry a lot of stress in the area of container deposit.”
To him, this is one major achievement in the past five years.
“Before now, when you loaded cargo, after discharging the cargo, you would be on the road for weeks before you are able to return the empty containers. The importer is incurring demurrage and the truck is also stuck. We no longer return empty containers to the port; we return them to the holding bays across Lagos State and beyond. This saves us a lot of turnaround time. This was an initiative of COMTUA to the Nigerian Shippers’ Council and the Nigerian Ports Authority.
He said that before now, the congestion in the port area was not only limited to the roads only. From time to time, COMTUA embarked on educating the drivers on the need to be more professional in their conduct.
” I can assure you, in recent times, the rate of accident has reduced and our drivers are more professional now. In addition to this, you will understand that COMTUA has been faced with a lot of challenges vis-a-vis so many unpopular policies of the government and we do not hesitate often to engage the government in policy making. For example, in the past, when the federal government was setting up the Presidential Task Team, members of COMTUA were included in that project and that project stayed for a period and served some of the purposes even though there were challenges.”
Maritime Agencies
OIL FACILITIES PROTECTION: Tompolo’s Tantita Acquires High-Tech Drones From US Firm.
By Izuchukwu Ozoemena
Tantita Security Services Ltd (TSSL), the company in charge of security surveillance over oil and gas installations in Nigeria’s Niger Delta region, is in collaboration with Textron Systems Corporation, a United States–based defence and aerospace company, to supply her three advanced Aerosonde Mk. 4.7 Vertical Takeoff and Landing (VTOL) uncrewed aircraft systems (UAS).
TSSNL owned by Chief Government Ekpemupolo (popularly known as Tompolo) disclosed the business deal in her website publication of December 29, 2025. The drones will be delivered in a fully ITAR-Free configuration.
The Aerosonde Mk. 4.7 is designed to operate without runways, utilising hybrid quadrotor technology that enables vertical takeoff and landing, as well as fixed-wing flight.
The Aerosonde Mk. 4.7 VTOL UAS, Textron Systems says, is a mature, industry-proven autonomous platform known for its high reliability and operational flexibility. Its dual-mode capability allows it to operate seamlessly in complex and high-risk environments, making it well-suited for security operations within Nigeria’s oil and gas sector.
Giving further insight into the contract, Senior Vice President, Air, Land and Sea Systems at Textron Systems, David Phillips, said the deployment would significantly enhance Tantita’s operational capability.
”The Aerosonde Mk. 4.7 VTOL UAS is a proven solution that will enable Tantita Security Services to expand its capabilities to protect the oil and gas infrastructure essential to Nigerian security and prosperity,” he stated.
The Aerosonde platform has accumulated over 700,000 flight hours across some of the world’s most challenging operating environments, underscoring its reliability and performance.
Tantita Security Services is expected to deploy the systems to strengthen surveillance and protection of critical oil and gas assets across Nigeria.
The contract also includes options for operator training and the supply of additional aircraft to support future capability expansion. Textron Systems noted that the agreement builds on a previous Foreign Military Sale (FMS) contract to Nigeria, further highlighting its ongoing commitment to supporting Nigerian security operations.
Textron Systems is a global leader in uncrewed air, land and sea systems, with the Aerosonde family of UAS currently supporting international customers and operations aboard more than 10 U.S. Navy ships. The company is a subsidiary of Textron Inc. (NYSE: TXT), a diversified multinational with interests spanning aviation, defence, industrial manufacturing and finance.
With multiple payload configurations and comprehensive training and support services, the Aerosonde Mk. 4.7 VTOL UAS offers a versatile and efficient solution for security operations in demanding environments, reinforcing Tantita Security Services’ role in safeguarding Nigeria’s critical energy infrastructure.
By Izuchukwu Ozoemena
In the ongoing efforts to thwart economic sabotage in the Niger Delta, Tantita Security Services Ltd, the firm engaged in pipeline surveillance operations in the oil -rich region, has nabbed four suspected oil thieves, intercepting their vessel named MT Thor. Suspects are to undergo trial for economic sabotage .
Speaking at the handover of the suspects at Koko Port, Tantita’s Executive Director of Operations, Capt Warredi Enisouh, said the suspects were apprehended with an unspecified quantity of suspected illegally-sourced petroleum products aboard the vessel.
The interception occurred on 15 December 2025, around the Koko–Excravos axis of Delta State, says a situation report made available by the Special Prosecution Team (SPT) of the Inter-Agency Task Force on Petroleum Product Theft.
The report stated that Tantita alerted the Head of Investigation of the SPT after intercepting MT Thor, allegedly laden with crude oil obtained through illicit means.
It was further alleged that the vessel was being escorted by personnel of the Police Marine Unit, Delta State, who reportedly claimed they were acting on directives from the Force Intelligence Department (FID), Abuja.
Preliminary investigations by law enforcement agencies revealed that the vessel, now classified as an exhibit in an ongoing criminal investigation, is linked to a jetty operated by Ebenco Global Services Limited. Investigation officers disclosed that documents and correspondence connected to the jetty were obtained and are currently under review.
“The owner of the jetty, Mr. Ebenezer, was contacted by investigators and reportedly provided additional documents, including court orders, which are also being analysed as part of the investigation.
“On December 16, a joint investigation team led by the Head of Investigation of the SPT conducted a Joint Inspection Visit in Koko. The team first met at Tantita’s corporate headquarters in Warri for a briefing, which was also attended by the jetty owner.
“During the inspection, investigators attempted to obtain samples from MT Thor but were unable to do so immediately as the vessel had not yet arrived at the jetty, having been towed from an earlier location by security operatives.
“While awaiting the vessel’s arrival, the team inspected other containers suspected to be carrying crude oil within the premises of Ebenco Global Links Limited, where samples were taken from a storage barge.
“MT Thor eventually berthed at about 8:30 p.m. on 16 December, prompting the joint team to adjourn sampling and other procedures until the following day. As of 17 December 2025, investigators were reported to be en route to Koko to continue sample collection and complete investigation formalities,” the report read.
Receiving the suspects, the Head of the Special Prosecution Team of the Inter-Agency Task Force, Omar Sini, reaffirmed the Federal Government’s resolve to dismantle crude oil theft networks in the Niger Delta, assuring that all findings would be thoroughly examined and prosecuted in line with the law.
Customs
NSC Boss, Akutah, Speaks At Maritime Journalists’ Seminar, Harps on Developing Trends the Press Cannot Overlook.
By Izuchukwu Ozoemena
It has been canvassed that as the maritime industry grows in complexity, driven by digitalization, new trade realities, regulatory reforms and global logistic shifts, journalism practice within the space should toe the same line.
Dr Pius Ukeyima Akutah, the Executive Secretary/CEO of the Nigerian Shippers’ Council (NSC) stated this in a keynote address he delivered in Lagos, Thursday, during the 10th Anniversary Annual Seminar for Maritime Journalists hosted by First Mediacon Network Ltd, publishers of Shipping Position Daily.
Acknowledging that the Nigerian Shippers’ Council has benefitted immensely from the sustained and professional coverage offered by the maritime press, more collaborative efforts is needed to enhance efficiency and competitiveness in the port environment. He was represented by the agency’s Director of Special Duties, Mr Moses Abere.
”This decade-long journey affirms a simple truth: no maritime sector can advance without a strong, knowledgeable and committed media community.” Akutah added.
Strengthening maritime journalism for the future, he noted, requires technical accuracy, understanding of global practices and an appreciation of regulatory frameworks.
The journalist should also be equipped to interrogate data, utilize digital tools and apply emerging technologies such as Al in research, storytelling and analysis.
He added that in a sensitive sector such as maritime, misinformation can undermine policy, investor confidence and national economic stability.
”At the Nigerian Shippers’ Council, we remain committed to open communication and structured engagement with the media to enhance mutual understanding and sectoral development.”
Akutah assured that the NSC would continue to partner with the press through knowledge-sharing, capacity-building collaborations and joint initiatives that support a more informed and capable maritime media landscape.
”As the Port Economic Regulator, the Nigerian Shippers’ Council remains committed to promoting efficiency, transparency and competitiveness within the maritime sector.”
”We consider the media as essential partners in informing stakeholders, shaping public understanding and strengthening accountability.”
”We will continue to support credible and responsible maritime journalism and are open to meaningful engagements that enhance professionalism and knowledge within the press community.”
Dr Akabogu (left) presenting a souvenir to Dr Maiwada, National PRO, Nigeria Customs Service.
As the press celebrates
a 10-year milestone, Akutah advised, there should be a commitment to build a stronger future, one defined by accurate information, robust collaboration and shared progress.
Unveiling the Centre for Maritime Media & Capacity Development at the event, Mr Sesan Onileimo, CEO First Mediacon Network Ltd stressed the need to future-proof maritime reporting in Nigeria. The new Centre, he said, was created to respond to rapid changes reshaping journalism and the maritime sector.
“The maritime media space is evolving rapidly under the pressure of digitalisation, artificial intelligence and social media. This Centre is our bold response to ensure journalists remain knowledgeable, relevant and impactful, regardless of how long they have been on the beat,” Onileimo explained.
The Centre, he added, would not only take over the organisation of the annual seminar but would also deliver continuous, year-round manpower development programmes for maritime journalists and content creators.
“What we are doing is moving from an annual event to a permanent structure for capacity development. The Centre is also open to partnerships with industry stakeholders who share our vision of a stronger and more professional maritime media,” Onileimo added.
Dignitaries at the event included Mr Babandede, ACG Zone ‘A’ of the Nigeria Customs Service accompanied by the National Public Relations Officer, Dr Aliyu Maiwada, notable maritime lawyer Dr Emeka Akabogu (SAN) and Dr Kayode Farinto, former Acting National President of ANLCA.
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Customs3 weeks agoNSC Boss, Akutah, Speaks At Maritime Journalists’ Seminar, Harps on Developing Trends the Press Cannot Overlook.
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Customs3 weeks agoTincan Customs Achieves N51.8Bn Surplus Above 2025 Revenue Target
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Maritime Agencies2 weeks agoNIGER DELTA SECURITY : Tantita Arrests 4 Oil Thieves, Nabs Vessel .
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Maritime Agencies1 week agoOIL FACILITIES PROTECTION: Tompolo’s Tantita Acquires High-Tech Drones From US Firm.
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Maritime Agencies2 weeks agoNEW YEAR CELEBRATION: MARAN Appreciates Stakeholders, Requests Greater Support and Collaboration in 2026.