The Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA) has accused the Nigerian Navy of complicity in the traffic situation in and around the Lagos ports thereby adding to the cost taking out cargo from the ports and returning of empty containers back to the ports.
Speaking during the National Executive Committee (NECOM) meeting of ANLCA on Tuesday, the National Vice President of the association, Dr. Kayode Farinto accused the Nigerian Navy officers who superintend the task force team on traffic decongestion of subjecting the truckers to untold hardship along the port corridor.
Farinto alleged that Navy officers initially extort as much as N150,000 from the truckers and later reduced the amount to N80,000 hence the reason the wrote to officially invite the Commander of the NNS Beecroft requesting for a meeting between the association and the Nigerian Navy.
He said,” We wanted a situation where it will not look as if we don’t have our facts and that was why we invited everybody to come and give them the fact that you have. But unfortunately, we just got a call from them now that we are likely to reschedule this meeting”.
He went on to submit that if the cost of bringing in empty container into seaport can be reduced, it would go a long way in reducing the cost of cargo clearing in our ports saying that the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) had started a manual call up system hence the reason everybody was lashing on it to be a partaker of what was happening in the port.
“Between Ijora or Ojuelegba Bridge to Western Avenue to Apapa, there are about five points, if you want to appreciate what I am saying, don’t come with a camera so that they won’t lynch you, come to the port at 11.30pm, you will think they are having a party. At every point that you are seeing, trailer drivers are meant to part with lots of money before your trailer will be able to access the port and that is why if you look at the roads now, there are some trucks that have been on the road for more than two weeks.
“And when we look at what our people are going through, about five weeks ago, for you to load a container in the port between Tincan and Ikeja, it costs about N600, 000 if not recently that it is coming down and that was why we are asking how do we solve this problem? And we wrote to the Naval Commander that your officers are the one actually adding to the problem because they force these drivers to pay this money. There is a different between when you give with consent and when you actually force money out of somebody. If you don’t give them money, your container will not be allowed to move, you will be beaten up and your trailer will be on the line.
“We will look at a day where the man will come but if they don’t come, we are piling up issues because we are likely to have invitation from the Presidency, we have written them that we want to have access to Mr. President, we are going to go with so many documents on what is happening in the port and let them know that the maritime industry is dying and the government is looking the other way”, he submitted.
On his part, the National Secretary of ANLCA, Alhaji Abdulazeez Babatunde Mukaila added that after the first letter that was written to the Navy Commander, he received a private call from a man who claimed to be the SA to the Commander inviting him to a private meeting which he turned down on account that such a private meeting would not do ANLCA any good.
He continued,” We want the Commander to come over and tell us why we need to spend such money. Of course, they denied it. I have a truck; I know I pay such money on that bridge. And this is the result, we accepted the challenge and will not let go but the meeting will be rescheduled as they said”.
However, when Primetime Reporters arrived Western Naval Command Headquarters in Apapa to get the reaction of the Information Officer on the allegation against the Navy, it was told that the Officer was away in Abuja and would not come back until next. Efforts to get him on Phone proved abortive as his phone was not going through.
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