By Joshua Yousouph
The Lagos State Trucks and Cargo Operations Committee (LASTCOC) has commenced a sustained sanitation exercise on port access corridors in Lagos, with a focus on curbing extortion, reducing unnecessary checks and ensuring smoother movement of trucks into the ports.
The exercise, which commenced on September 23, continued on Thursday and is expected to run for several days as the Committee responds to complaints from truckers over repeated checks and alleged unauthorised demands for money along port access routes.
According to LASTCOC, the intervention is not targeted at eliminating legitimate regulatory, security and operational checks on the corridors, but at preventing the abuse of such checkpoints for extortion.
The Committee explained that although there are no legal toll points on the port access roads, some authorised checking points established for legitimate purposes were allegedly being used as avenues for unauthorised collections from truckers.
It said where multiple checkpoints perform substantially the same function without operational necessity, it would engage the relevant authorities to address such duplication, particularly between pre-gates and the ports.
“Truckers should be able to undergo legitimate checks without being subjected to unauthorised demands for money, unnecessary delays, or repeated checks serving no clear purpose,” the Committee said.
LASTCOC added that it was documenting complaints, locations and reported demands to support appropriate intervention and corrective action.
The Committee said the exercise would not be limited to daytime operations, noting that mechanisms were being put in place to capture and verify reports of alleged night-time extortion and refer established cases to the appropriate authorities.
However, LASTCOC also warned truck owners and drivers against violating established access protocols, particularly parking or queuing on port access corridors without genuine call-up or legitimate operational reasons.
The Committee specifically cautioned against trucks remaining on the access routes merely while waiting for a Terminal Delivery Order (TDO), noting that such practices could obstruct traffic flow, worsen congestion and create opportunities for extortion.
It said trucks without genuine call-up or legitimate operational reasons should not occupy the corridors, adding that LASTCOC would work with relevant stakeholders to distinguish genuine operational constraints from deliberate breaches of established procedures.
The Committee stressed that the sanitation exercise was therefore intended to address both the alleged abuse of truckers by unauthorised collectors and non-compliance by truck operators.
The exercise is being carried out in collaboration with the National Association of Road Transport Owners (NARTO), Association of Maritime Truck Owners (AMATO), Maritime Workers Union of Nigeria (MWUN) and other stakeholders.
LASTCOC said the collaboration would support the submission of credible complaints, field observations, monitoring and timely intervention on reported cases.
The Committee said the latest intervention builds on measures it had undertaken over the past two years to address extortion at several locations across Lagos, adding that extending the exercise to port access corridors underscores the importance of efficient and transparent truck movement to the state’s economy.
It further said the initiative aligns with the objectives of the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC) to reduce unnecessary barriers, delays, costs and extortion affecting businesses and the movement of goods.
LASTCOC urged truck owners and drivers to provide credible and verifiable information on suspected extortion through the appropriate channels while also complying with legitimate port-access procedures.
The Committee maintained that lawful checks must be protected, while their abuse must be stopped, just as legitimate truck operations must be facilitated and practices that obstruct traffic or circumvent established access protocols discouraged.
The sanitation exercise, it said, would continue in the coming days.
