NPA’s Delay In Approving TTP’s E-TAG Technology Prolongs Racketeering In ETO System
NPA’s Delay In Approving TTP’s E-TAG Technology Prolongs Racketeering In ETO System
By Inkwatch Media
The Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) is under growing criticism for stalling the approval of an electronic truck identification solution developed by Truck Transit Parks Ltd (TTP), a move stakeholders say is allowing widespread corruption and operational failures to persist within the Electronic Call-up System, known as ETO.
Investigation by the Inkwatch media a conglomerate of maritime reporters and in an exclusive interview, with a source close to the TTP, revealed that the company has designed an advanced E-TAG technology intended to plug the loopholes in the ETO system, including the rising tide of manual interventions and fraudulent practices plaguing truck call-up operations at the ports.
“We’ve built a system that will automate truck verification and eliminate human interference, which is the root of the racketeering. But up till now, the NPA has not given the required approval for implementation,” the source l disclosed.
Launched in 2021, the ETO system was initially hailed as a groundbreaking step to decongest Apapa and Tin Can ports and restore sanity to port access roads. However, over the years, it has become riddled with operational inefficiencies, manual overrides, fake call-up tickets, and collusion among port officials, enforcement agencies, and unscrupulous truck operators.
The new E-TAG technology by TTP would make it virtually impossible for trucks without genuine electronic clearance to access the ports, thus blocking revenue leakages and corrupt entry bypasses. The E-TAG operates by assigning tamper-proof, machine-readable tags to authorized trucks, automatically verifying them at electronic gates without the need for manual processing.
But despite the potential of the E-TAG to revolutionize port logistics and eliminate the human factor fueling bribery and congestion, the NPA appears to be dragging its feet.
From our investigations, several presentations have been done, detailed proposals submitted, and even pilot testing, completed.
The delays are not technical—they’re political or bureaucratic.
The lack of urgency from the NPA raises serious concerns about institutional resistance to reform and transparency. Maritime stakeholders, freight forwarders, and truckers have decried the continuation of “business as usual” practices and are now calling on the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola, to intervene.
Speaking to journalists, a port user who requested anonymity said:
“The ETO is now a scam. It has become a tool in the hands of a cartel that extorts truckers daily. If TTP has a solution and NPA won’t approve it, then someone in the system is benefitting from the chaos.”
This development also casts a shadow over the Federal Government’s digitalization drive in the maritime sector, which includes reforms touted to attract investment, cut down turnaround time for vessels, and increase competitiveness in the West African sub-region.
As the port community waits for NPA’s response, pressure continues to mount on the agency to explain why a ready-made solution to a persistent national logistics crisis is being held back, and whose interests are being protected in the process.
Suffices to state unequivocally that the ineffectiveness of ETO Call-up System is as a result of the corrupt practices of Some government officials whose duty it is to enforce and manage the system, and not TTP
