The Vice President of National Association of Road Transport Owners (NARTO); Alhaji Abdullahi Inuwa has opened up on why truck owners jettisoned the 30 percent haulage cut agreement they had with the Nigerian Shippers’ Council (NSC).
Recall that the truck owners had agreed to a 30 percent slash in their charges after the management of NSC appealed to them to do so, as part of efforts to support port operations during the COVID-19 lockdown.
But, barely one month after the deal was struck, many of the truck owners have reneged on the agreement, even as some truck owners even charge much more than the initial rate.
In a telephone chat with our correspondent, Abdullahi Inuwa, who is also, Head of Operations, Council of Maritime Transport Union’s and Association (COMTUA), stated that truck owners failed to adhere to the agreement due to the preferential treatment given to barge operators.
He accused the NSC of failing to engage barge operators to also reduce their fares on consignments movement through the waterways. He alleged, that shipping companies and terminal operators have also failed to adhere to their own agreement on waiver of storage and demurrage charges on consignments.
According to him “when we have the 30 percent cut, after the meeting with NSC, we were surprised that it was that time the Federal Government increased their tariff, while the shipping companies and terminal operators are relenting over what they have earlier promised NPA and NSC”.
“The other issue is that we were asked to cut our flat rate, knowing that now there is competition; we have barges, but they did not call the barge operators to discuss how they will cut their own rate”
“The Shippers’ Council should have also engaged barge operators to also reduce their charges, but limiting it to truck owners alone sends a negative signal to the haulage sub sector of the maritime community”, he argued.
Inuwa also lamented that due to the bad state of the road leading in and out of Apapa ports, it would be difficult for truckers to reduce cost. “If you look at the road construction’ Tin can road is narrow and containers are now falling, we cannot be running at a loss just to make others happy”, he said.
Inuwa also lamented the poor process and procedures of export documentation at the nation’s ports, he informed that about 300 export containers are stranded at the Lagos ports, yet to be admitted into the terminal.
“At times the terminal operators select the number of containers that would gain access into their facilities and in most cases some of the trucks are nowhere close to the ports.
He further informed that before the pandemic, export cargoes gain entrance into the terminals without much stress, despite the ongoing road construction but maintained that since the lockdown has been relaxed, the situation is worse.
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