The National Association of Road Transport Owners (NARTO), Dry Cargo section, Lagos State branch has commended the Federal Operations Unit Zone A of the Nigeria Customs Services, resident at Ikeja, Lagos for the release of 40 trucks belonging to members of the Association of Maritime Truck Owners (AMATO) impounded eight months ago for carrying unprocessed timber for export.
It will be recalled that the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) on Wednesday released the trucks to the owners warning truck drivers and owners against lifting unprocessed timbers meant for export out of the country even as it said that unprocessed timber was on the import prohibition lists of the service.
The Customs Area Controller, FOU ‘A’, Comptroller Muhammad Dahiru Umar further stated that the service released the trucks to the association after thorough investigation showed that the truck drivers and owners were not complicit of the alleged crime.
The Vice Chairman Dry Cargo Section of NARTO, Alhaji Abdullahi Inuwa Mohammed commended the unit for their understanding in releasing those trucks since the investigations revealed that the drivers and the owners of the trucks were not aware of the law prohibiting what they were carrying.
Abdullahi however, advised the service to carry the truck owners along in the enlightenment campaigns so as to equip them with knowledge of what goods constitute contraband that they may in turn educate their drivers to desist from carrying such goods in order to forestall any future re occurrence.
“I commend the Federal Operations Unit for their understanding because why I am saying this is after much investigations, it has shown that the drivers were unaware of what they were carrying. So, I have to commend them for that because those who knew about it and failed to desist from it, I think they (customs) laid their hands on them and they (Customs) said they are taking them to court. It is a good development, so, I commend them for releasing the 40 trucks.
“But my advice to the Nigeria Customs Service, you know we are the truck owners and the drivers, whenever they want to take their campaign against all those contraband, they should carry along the truck unions and associations because once they carry along the truck unions and associations for the enlightenment campaign, it will go a long way because the truck owners will educate their drivers on what to carry and what not carry because of the implications therein.
“At times, the owner will stay here in Lagos or the far north, a truck driver on his return may along the way find goods that they want him to carry, if he is not fully aware of what constitutes contraband, because he wants to load his truck on his return, maybe deceived to carry contraband. But if he is aware that what he wants to carry is contraband and that the law is against it, he desist from carrying it and it will help the customs, it will help the Nigerian government also to curb the menace of those who are trying to sabotage the government”, he posited.
Recall that the Nigeria Customs Service (NSC) last week dragged a Chinese, Zhu Jinxin, to the Federal High Court in Lagos for allegedly attempting to export several logs of wood that was under prohibited list.
It was learnt that he brought the wood in a container to Tin-Can Port for export to China.
It was learnt that Nigeria and 10 other countries in West Africa have lost $65.3billion to China on Illegal rosewood trade in the last one year.
Customs said he did so notwithstanding an export prohibition on the wood which was in force at the time.
The alleged offense, according to customs, was contrary to Section 64(1)(b) of the Customs and Excise Management Act, Cap C45 of Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004.
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