Investigations carried out by Shipping Position Daily in Apapa have unraveled how military and paramilitary personnel are allegedly engaged in the dirty job as ‘escorts’ and drivers of imported vehicles and container-laden trucks in Apapa.
It will be recalled that the management of the Tin Can port recently raised an alarm over uniformed men taking up driving duties in exchange for money, a situation the port said has led to the disruption of plans by some of the terminals to transfer containers to their off-dock terminal as these uniformed men disregard all traffic laws to either take trucks into or out of the port.
Our investigations about the veracity of the allegations revealed that indeed these personnel make as much as N80,000 on a trip, depending on the distance and the type of cargo.
In a chat with our correspondent at Tin Can last week, a chieftain of the National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders (NAGAFF) Mr. Nnadi Ugochukwu said that the ‘officers’ who are mostly involved in the act are those who are not on official duty. He explained that they normally come to Apapa to ‘hustle’.
Giving a breakdown of the cost, he confirmed that the fee largely depends on the content of the truck and locations, even as he stressed that for movement within Mile 2 and its environs, they normally collect a minimum of N5,000, while to take a Tokunbo car down to eastern parts of the country goes for between N70, 000 and N80, 000.
“Those people helping to drive or escort trucks are the people who are not on official duty, they come around here to hustle. The price depends on where the vehicle is going and your negotiation and also what you have, if they go around Mile 2 and its environs they collect at least N5, 000, but if they are going to the Eastern part of the country, some collect as high as N70, 000 to N80, 000. But if it is within Lagos and Ogun state, it is between N3, 000 to N7, 000 like Badagry and its environs”, he disclosed to one of our correspondents.
Corroborating what Ugochukwu said, a car dealer in Apapa, Mr. Donatus Chinonso said the uniformed men-turned-drivers and escorts collect a minimum of N60,000 for salons and N70, 000 for SUVs going to any eastern part of the country.
Speaking on why shippers and freight forwarders patronize such people, he said owners of the cars prefer using the uniformed men for maximum security, even as he admitted that some of them might also be dismissed officers, who still wear camouflage because of security reasons.
He also disclosed that, “some collect N60,000 for small cars to go to places like the Eastern parts of the country, but for jeeps they collect N70,000 to N80,000 because of the fuel consumption and the expenses they will bear on the road”
“Some buyers prefer to hire them, so that they will be sure that their vehicles will arrive safely and they also prefer people that know how to settle customs to avoid issues. Even when duties are fully paid they still need security officials, so that the cars won’t be snatched on the road.
He confirmed that “some of them are dismissed officers, but they still wear camouflage because of security reasons. You know when they are on uniform like that, it will be difficult for them to be attacked by armed robbers. For them to drive the car, we feel more secured and the arrangement mostly comes from the buyer”.
Meanwhile, both the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), the Presidential Task Team (PTF) on restoration of law and order in Apapa, have denied the allegations.
The General Manager, Security, NPA, Mr. Olumide Omotosho in a chat with our correspondent in Apapa last week, maintained that it is impossible for anyone to exit the gate without the agency carrying out its statutory duties whether the person is wearing military camouflage or not.
He warned that anybody caught will be dealt with appropriately, even as he urged anybody with pictorial evidence of such occurrence to come up.
“You can’t say because you want to drive out in a camouflage or uniform, I will not collect my fee from you, or I will not check you; that is impossible. Customs and NPA have statutory roles which they must perform and nobody drives out without these agencies carrying out their statutory roles, if that officer is caught, he or she will be severely punished, nobody can do that at the gate cameras are watching them”, he stated.
“How will one man drive a truck or even escort a truck from the ports and because he is wearing camouflage, he won’t be stopped at the gate, objectively that is not true. But what we are saying is that there could be collusion once in a while but not with impunity”.
Omotosho however challenged anybody with evidence of such act to come up with it, adding that he carries out regular inspection at the ports and has not noticed such act.
“If you say it happens often, can you show me some pictorial evidences, lets be objective here, nothing is impossible, you can’t rule out collusion and all that, but to what extent do these things happen. I need an evidence to back it up, if there is no evidence, I don’t believe in that, because I go to the ports often and I don’t see these things”, he stressed.
He however admitted that, “although when you turn your back, anything can happen, but it is getting better by the day”.
Also speaking, the Vice Chairman, Presidential Task Team on Apapa traffic; Mr Kayode Opeifa told our correspondent that some military officers who drive trucks in Apapa are from the military logistics and are not fake soldiers, adding that it is wrong to assume that any truck driver who is dressed in military camouflage is a fake soldier.
“There is a Nigerian Army logistics truck with army plate number on it, I am aware of that and their office is based in Apapa, they move military equipment. So when people see them in uniform, it is not always like that, if you don’t interrogate a group of people, you may not know what is happening. It is also true that there are people who operate as ex-military men”, he added.
“So when the issue of people in uniform came up, the army logistics were informed that was long time ago and I don’t think we still have that in Apapa right now, to the best of my knowledge. The truth of the matter is when you see people who are dressed in uniform, it is wrong to assume that they are hired; if you see them go and interrogate them”, he told our correspondent.
Opeifa maintained that NPA has the capacity to know if they are fake or real soldiers at the gate, even as he stressed that the team challenges anybody who is in a military uniform and is driving a truck in Apapa.
“And I have also heard people making that statement and I have also advised them to be careful, all of them are now wearing camouflage, I have stopped them one time and they proved to me that they are from the Nigerians Army Logistics. And when they are doing this type of official duty they can’t do that without wearing uniform. NPA has the capacity at their gates to know whether they are military or not, the much I know they are from the army logistics because their vehicles are marked”
“If there are some fake uniform men that collect money to escort trucks, I am not aware. If someone is wearing camouflage and is driving a truck, we won’t just allow you to pass because you are wearing a camouflage, if I see that I will challenge you, we challenge any uniform person driving a truck in Apapa”, he explained.
Meanwhile, attempts to get the reaction from the Nigerian Police were not fruitful as the Force Public Relations Officer, Mr. Frank Mba, a Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) never picked our correspondent’s calls or returned the calls as at the time of filling this report.
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