The near moribund state of the Nigerian Postal Service (NIPOST) has been attributed to modernity which has thrown up stiff competition and alternatives in the postal service space.
The Asagba of Asaba, His Royal Majesty, Asagba Prof Epiphany Azinge, SAN, OON, highlighted the factors counting against the effective functioning of the federal establishment when the State Postal Manager, Mrs Esther Ugoosuoha, paid him a courtesy visit.
Asagba Prof Azinge said in its present condition, NIPOST only needed to re-invent its wheel by trying to see how it could navigate the uncharted path and still remain afloat, inject new ideas and be more proactive in order to sustain itself and its mandate.
He advocated government’s regulation of areas where the institution was currently short changed to further create monopoly and give it an edge over competitors.
His Royal Majesty noted the proliferation of courier services across the country which needed to be controlled for the sustainability of NIPOST’s services in that regard, cushion the effect of the intervention and make it the agency’s area of influence in the industry.
The highly respected traditional ruler identified as paramount the affixing of stamp to correspondences by lawyers, describing the sale of postage stamps as one area NIPOST enjoyed monopoly, which could be extended to other areas of its mandate.
Going forward, the Asagba assured the State NIPOST Postal Manager that any letter requiring his attention and signature must have a stamp affixed to it, as a way of patronizing the establishment and encouraging other traditional rulers to follow suit.
Asagba Prof Azinge took particular note of the issue of trespass of NIPOST’s land in Asaba, which he said was a fall out of people not appreciating the place of the Service in the present scheme of things, promising to wade into the matter and ensure that the land was secured.
He, however, emphasized that people needed to come to terms with the continuous existence and relevance of NIPOST and called on the authorities to not only give the agency a facelift, especially the Asaba office, but also sensitize the people on its mandate.
The Delta State Postal Manager of NIPOST, Mrs Esther Ugoosuoha, had, earlier in her remarks, said she visited to familiarize with the Asagba to seek collaboration and receive royal blessings.
Mrs Ugoosuoha told the king that NIPOST in Delta was up and running, though faced with some challenges in its Asaba headquarters, including encroachment of its land, relegation of postal service to the background due to the advent of ICT, refusal of Post Office Box and Private Mail Bag subscribers to renew them, indebtedness to the agency, amongst others.
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