Barr. Mrs. Trish Okereke is the Executive Secretary of Petroleum Products Depots Owners Association which consists of six petroleum tank farm owning companies that utilise the common user facility of the Waziri Jetty, Apapa, Lagos. The member companies include, Hensmor Nig. Ltd., AZ Petroleum Nig. Ltd., G-Eurafric Nig. Ltd., Aiteo Energy, NIPCO PLC, and one Terminal Nig. Ltd.

In this interview with Moses Nosike, Okereke reveals why women in management perform well. She also stresses the challenges PPDOA is going through for years now in the maritime sector. Excerpts:

What is the role of PPDÒA in the maritime sector?

PPDOA is an association of petroleum products tank farm owning companies that import and service the country with petroleum product like PMS, DPK, AGO, Base Oil & Gas LPG. In our axis, our companies are responsible for at least 60% of the petroleum products that service the Lagos region of Nigeria and we utilise the water front jetty to deliver petroleum products to our storage tanks using vessels that connect through the pipes that are laid at the Waziri Jetty.

There was a rumour that Waziri Jetty Apapa was shutdown, if it’s true, why?

Yes, sometime in January 22, 2021, the Port Manager Apapa Ports Complex, upon allegations from Leader Marketing claims that their lease access to the adjoining land was being prevented, this port manager threatened sactions of closure, maintaining that a lease of the Adjoining Waziri jetty land had been issued to this Leader Marketing. All our written protest against such lease went unheard and instead Port Manager proceeded to close the jetty thereby flouting a subsisting injunction issued by the Federal High Court against both issuance of a lease to any company and closure of the jetty impeding our access to our laid pipes and interfering with our business.

Meanwhile, we have reliably informed that this Leader Marketing who is not even. Stakeholders at our axis is looking to partner with a container company called Clarion Shipping to allegedly use the jetty adjoining land for a container bond terminal. As if our tiny axis were not congested enough to approve such business is certain death from heightened fire incidents that is sure to ensue.

The jetty was closed even though a December 15, 2020 meeting between our member companies and NPA head office Marina, Lands & Estates GM, Alhaji Yusuf Ahmed confirmed to us that there were no lease to any company. So we were extremely confused when Mrs. Olotu still proceeded to maintain that it was Alhaji Yusuf”s office that issued the lease and that a lease did exist. The bizarre occurrence was that in all our written protest to NPA, it was Alhaji Yusuf that we were liaising with and crying to, given that he occupied the office responsible for leases, knew the history of the jetty, our fight and appeals for the adjoining land and our pleas on the grounds of safety over these many years.

What has the regulatory authority done to resolve the issue?

Regardless of the claims of Alhaji Yusuf that there was no lease issued to any company, nothing has been done by NPA or the Ministry of Transport to reopen the jetty in rescue of our business from the stringent actions of Port Manager. We were doubly confused and are now crying to the President to restore integrity to the corridors of NPA and to insist on obedience of the law by these public officers as the current injunction mandates that such wanton actions being taken in both the alleged lease and the closure should NOT be done.

As a barrister, does it mean that court injunctions are no more effective in Nigeria?

It may appear so. That is the reason we are crying out to the President, the National Assembly, the Minister of Transport. Public officers cannot take such closure actions that a court of law has expressly barred and certainly they cannot issue a lease where a court of law has mandated should not be issued. That would be chaos and to allow this to continue is evidencing the impunity that NPA is a private entity capable of acting without guidance and or legal responsibility. The President should not tolerate such illegal actions, no matter the auspices of the person or the officer.

We are indigenous companies already fighting to stay in the high stake oil and gas business, we should not be marginalised in a way that negates proper chances to compete with our peers.

The Federal Government agency of Nigerian Railway Corporation has almost completed the railway lines which run not up to 15yards behind our tank farm gates and our companies are strategically poised to conduct greater servicing of petroleum products to the North. The NPA cannot, of their own accord, determine what the courts should allow when a matter is being litigated. The Port Manager has acted illegally and she should be sanctioned at worst and at best reprimanded against such actions. If officers within NPA Lands & Estates department have acted irresponsibly by issuing a lease, that does not give her the license to act in the same illegal ways as well. On learning of the existing injunction, we expected that the Port Manager would advise NPA management against proceeding with closure but shockingly her actions then acted as the singular act that flouted the injunction and eroded the rule of law in this matter.

The powers that be should call her to order and to restore the peace and our belief in the rule of law.

2Again, if it is repair that NPA desired, as some whispers have claimed that the closure was done for repair. We beg to respectfully disagree because dialogue, which was not done here, should have been had before closure was done, if repairs was the genuine reason for the closure. Also, any claim of repair would be put to lie because NPA has acquiesced for over two years now when we had a joint inspection of the jetty that was to be upgraded by us. They didn’t write to refuse our various applications to upgrade, they instead conducted two joint inspections with our members, they ordered under water survey when we submitted our construction and engineering drawings and based on the under water survey ordered, we commissioned a contractor to conduct the survey and to upgrade the jetty and paid advance to ensure materials for the works were committed lest price hike affect our construction plans and quote. NPA in good conscience cannot turn a blind eye on our various steps and now claim to wish to repair using a different company. Such actions are highly irregular and devoid of due process and it should not be encouraged. The rules of 1st right of refusal should have been applied if NPA was really desirous of conducting repairs without agendas.

How didn’t develop interest in law career?

Well, I have always been an arbiter for fair treatment. I dislike any where where someone or an institution acts without regard for what should be. From an early age I have always stood up to bullies even when it wasn’t my fight because I believe in fair treatment. Those feelings of unfair treatment marked the singular reason I went into the law.

Research has it that women  are good managers especially at top levels, but we don’t have many of them in politics, why?

Women are great manager because their ability to follow through is second to none. On the same side, when women act illegally they tend to do so in excess of what men would do and I think its just because we are tenacious in our pursuit of something so when we do deviate from the law or walk the path that is wrong, we tend to do so with equal passion and tenacity as well and tend to do much more damage than a man would ever dare. We push the lines whether for good or for bad.

What has been your major challenge as a barrister and as PPDOA Executive Secretary?

My major challenge is to see that business is not as usual in this country. The regular process of things do not process regular results and that is the greatest heartache of mine in returning to this country to practice law.

As Executive Secretary, my greatest challenge is the fact that dealing with members of NPA, I get the feeling of real frustration. The way things move at that corridor is scary and shows an apathy to nationalism. It seems that properties owned by NPA belong to NPA; they have forgotten they’re a government body because over the years they have acted with so much power and impunity. NPA management believe the hype of their offices but until they’re made to see that even at the highest helms they must answer to the people; they act in ways that show their officers are their own.