Truck Drivers Commence Strike Action Over Customs Harassment

By ZION Olalekan

The Association of Maritime Truck Owners (AMRTO) would today commence a strike action by withdrawing its services from Nigerian ports for what it described as alleged clamp down and auctioning of the trucks by the Nigeria Customs Service.

Chairman of AMARTO, Chief Remi Ogungbemi at the weekend told our correspondent that truckers are being punished for the atrocities committed by notorious importers and their clearing agents who used trucks for their illicit activities.

He said it is wrong to be using truckers as scapegoats for the offence committed by others.

In a statement sent to our correspondent, the truckers petition the National Assembly in a Save Our Soul message, charging the lawmakers to prevail on the Management of Nigeria Customs to stop auctioning of trucks and to release all trucks that were arrested and impounded for carrying containers said to contain Customs offending goods.

Ogungbemi said “Truckers in maritime industry are not smugglers, we don’t cross border. We operate our legitimate business around the ports within Nigeria. We are not smugglers”

‘We considered the said offense to be none of our fault for the following reasons; we are not the Importer nor Exporter of the goods in the containers.
“We are not part of government agencies that are performing the examination of the goods”

“We are not privy to the documents using to clear the containers.
“We only involve when all the necessary payment and clearing processes is said to have been completed”

“Our involvement is just been the carrier of the containers, and how come that the ships that brought the containers into the country were not arrested, impounded or auction”

“After all, the owners or their agents presented documents and probably present during examination, if discrepancy is found, why not query the agents” he said