The cost of Apapa gridlock, defections crisis on Nigerian businesses

In the last two days, defections and Apapa gridlock are the two issues shaping Nigeria having different effects on businesses and the country’s politics. Last 72 hours have been spent by the concerned stakeholders in politics and economy on finding solutions to the problems.

On the gridlock, both Lagos State and Federal Governments have taken significant steps on the clearing of the gridlock around the Apapa Expressway. On the other hand, meetings and consultations are ongoing in different places on getting the right solutions to the mass defections that hit the ruling party, the All Progressives Congress. The People’s Democratic Party, the main opposition party, is not resting too in this regard. Information has it that the party is making consultation with the defected parliamentarians and others likely to join the party from the ruling party by September 2018.

However, Infoprations’ observation indicates that the uncertainties that characterized the polity in the last two days are taking toll on businesses and citizens. Politicians have shifted their attention to the preparations for 2019 general elections, preventing them from focusing on governance, most especially finding lasting solution to the gridlock that hit the country’s first seaport that contributes N20 billion to the economy daily.  

Analysing the impact of the two problems on businesses, Infoprations found that defections and companies moved together by 3.2%. This shows that the more people had interest in defections, the more they had interest on companies especially on what could be the consequences on them (companies). Infoprations also discovered that Apapa traffic in the last day affected Nigerian companies by 24%.

Further analysis establishes that the gridlock affected insurance, banking, oil and gas, consumer and industrial goods sectors’ share index on July 25th 2018 by 5.5%. This is an indication that Nigeria is likely to continue losing if the gridlock is not addressed by the concerned stakeholders. Apapa traffic can be solved when there is good governance and efficiency on the part of the state and federal governments, analysis suggests.