Est. read time: 2 minutes
NPA, NSC Moves To Avert Strike, Wades Into Customs, Truckers Face-Off
Fred Omotara, Lagos
The Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) and the Nigerian Shippers Council (NSC) have moved to avert an industrial action by truckers under the aegis of the Association of Maritime Truck Owners (AMATO) over the association face-off with the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) concerning incessant seizure of trucks.
Disclosing this to kadecommunicationng exclusively, Chairman of AMATO, Chief Remi Ogungbemi explained that truckers ought to have withdrawn their services this week from the ports over refusal of the NCS to release seized trucks.
According to Chief Remi Ogungbemi, “We ought to have withdrawn our services this week, but the NPA Managing Director, Mr. Mohammed Bello-Koko and the Executive Secretary/CEO of the Shippers Council, Hon. Emmanuel Jime have been reaching out to us not to embark on strike
“They have assured us that they will intervene in the matter by helping us to talk to the Customs to release our trucks in their warehouses.
“The number of trucks that Customs have seized and kept in their warehouses to rot away is over 500. They (Customs) keep seizing our trucks over an offence we know nothing about.
“If they won’t seize the ships that bring contraband cargoes to our ports, why are they seizing trucks that is just a means of conveyance of the cargo?
“We carry cargoes to earn a living. The content of such cargoes are not known to us at the point when we lift them from the ports.”