How Truckers Encourage Extortion Along Ports Access Roads-AMATO
Fred Omotara, Lagos
The Association of Maritime Truck Owners (AMATO) have blamed truckers for ensuring that extortion along the ports access roads persists.
Speaking with kadecommunicationng, Chairman of AMATO, Chief Remi Ogungbemi explained that truckers are to be blamed for encouraging extortion along the ports access roads.
According to Chief Ogungbemi, “When a trucker is number seven on the queue and wants to be number one, he walks up to the security officials or Area Boys and offers money to jump the queue. This is the main reason why extortion along the ports access roads have refused to go away.
“We truckers are the ones that are encouraging extortion along the ports access roads. It takes two to tango. If we are not luring the security operatives or Area Boys with money to jump the queue, extortion would have been history on our ports access roads.
“But we lured the security operatives and Area Boys during the trade boom when cargoes where everywhere in the ports to be lifted. Now that there are no cargoes due to the slump in trade volume, we are complaining of extortion.
“The security operatives and Area Boys we offered money during the trade boom period to jump queues have refused to leave the roads because they have tasted the money made from extortion and saw that it is “sweet”.
“Now that there are no cargoes to be lifted due to low trade volume, we are complaining. This is why extortion have persisted on our ports access roads.”
