•There is no increment, clearing agents only use that to extort importers—Haulage operator
Even as stakeholders are buck-passing on the actual cost of transporting containers by trucks from Lagos ports, the Nigerian Shippers’ Council (NSC) last week confirmed that some persons have been taking advantage of the chaotic traffic to extort transporters and also enrich themselves.
Executive Secretary of the Council, Mr Hassan Bello last week, however confirmed that some persons (identity withheld) who operate along the port corridor demand and extort truck drivers and that some of them were indeed arrested.
Bello, during a visit to one of the shipping companies in Lagos, said the council, about four weeks ago carried out a sting operation and apprehend some individuals who extorted truck drivers along the port access route.
He said, although there is no increase in charges by shipping companies or terminal operators, but due to the under-the-table charges, cost of clearing goods and haulage at the port have increased over time, he however said the council will continue to carry out such a sting operation to ensure that extortion of drivers is reduced to the barest minimum.
He told his host that, “there is no increase in the charges of shipping companies and terminal operators. There is under-the-table charge, there is extortion of truck drivers, Shippers Council is doing a lot to ensure that it is reduced to the barest minimum”
“For example, the Nigerian Shippers’ Council about two to three weeks ago, precisely between November 9 to 13, a sting operation was carried out by the Council in collaboration with some security agencies, we apprehended some people, this will be a continue exercise, we are going to be there day and night to ensure that this extortion is reduce”, he said.
But, clearing gents and haulage operators still disagreed over the true cost of moving a consignment from the Apapa port to some parts of Lagos.
Some stakeholders have lamented that the cost of moving a container from the Apapa port to Ikeja axis is as much as N800, 000 to N1,000,000 while alleging that haulage operators have so far increased their rates by more than 1000%.
In a chat with our correspondent, the President Computer and Allied Products Association of Nigeria (CAPDAN) Mr. Adeniyi Ahmed Ojikutu said the cost of hiring a truck to move a container out of Apapa port is as much as N800,000 to N1,000,000 within Lagos while getting a consignment transported from Apapa port to Abuja cost as much as N2 million.
“The cost of hiring a truck to move a container from the port is as much N800, 000 to N1 million within Lagos, while it cost as much as N2 million to move a container to Abuja; just to hire a truck that will carry your consignment, due to the congestion, because it will take them like two three weeks before they have access to the consignment and these are some of the things the authority needs to look at”, he said.
Speaking in the same vein, in a recent chat with journalists, the Vice President of Association of Nigeria Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA); Mr. Kayode Farinto had alleged that haulage companies have increased their charges by over 1000% while also alleging extortion by the Presidential Task Team on Apapa traffic, he also informed that the cost of moving container out of the Lagos port is as much as N800, 000.
However, a haulage operator and President of Committee of Maritime Truck Unions and Associations (COMTUA) Mr Leye Thompson debunked the claim that clearing agents pay as much as N800,000 to transport a container from the port.
He alleged that clearing agents only raise such humongous amount to extort money from their importers.
He said, although it cost as much as N800, 000 last year when the Navy was in charge of controlling the traffic at Apapa, but at present it only costs N350, 000 to transport a container from Apapa to Ikeja, while stating that members of the association have been warned not to inflate the cost of moving consignments from the port.
According to him, “clearing agents are the same persons telling their importers that haulage companies are charging abnormal rates, that if you don't pay N800,000 your container will not move from the port and I tell the importers that nothing of such happens again”.
He however admitted that, “sometimes last year there were a lot of crazy charges here and there, but this year as I am speaking with you, the highest you can move a 40ft container from Apapa port to Ikeja is not more than N350,000.
“So, if they are charging N800,00 as at December last year and this year is N350,000 and we have even held meetings with every member that nobody should increase haulage rates not even by a single naira, because we know what happened in the system worldwide and it's still happening till now and the economy is bad. The pandemic is causing a lot of problems, so things are not working the way they should, by adding to the haulage price we are creating more problems and we can't create more hardship for the common masses”.
“So, if any agent tells you they pay N800,000 tell them to prove it, they use these things to extort money from their customers; this is what they do, I am telling you, I can show you my invoice, but when these freight forwarders want to extort their importer, they cook up all sort of stories and put it at the door step of the transporters and we won’t accept that”, he said.
But, also adding his view, a truck owner and the public relations officer of COMTUA, Mr. Abdullahi Inuwa, confirmed that indeed the real cost of moving a container out of Lagos port is within N350,000 to N400,000.
He however said due to the demands of clearing agents to get their cargoes out of the port, the clearing agents/importers will demand to pay that much to truckers just to get their goods out of the port in time, he informed that money collected by security agents along the ports corridor to facilitate passage add up to the amount clearing agents say they pay to transport containers out of the port.
He explained that, “yes the cost of moving a container should not be more than N350,000, but because of the demand to get their goods out, so many importers are not able to move their containers out of the port for more than two months, because of the blockage.
“So it is the importers who are now doing anything to pay the truck owner, so it has now become like the higher offer in other to see their consignment out of the port” he said,
“Also, one of the issue is that those trucks that are doing stripping outside the port, because of the challenge there, they need to find their way to find a place where they can be able to discharge the goods, and they pay about N150,000 to some security agencies within the area and some will collect N50,000 each and when you add all these amount that agents say they pay, what truck owners really get its nothing to write home about, so it’s not the truckers that increase the charges”, he said.
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