The Council of Maritime Truck Unions and Associations (COMTUA) has cried out that, haulage business by Indigenous operators may go into extinction due to foreign dominance.
The Chairman of COMTUA, Adeyinka Aroyewun stated this at an event recently put together by Maritime Anti Corruption Network and Convention on Business Integrity (CBI).
According to him, in the next five years, the industry would have been taken over by foreigners because of the incentives they give importers and the sophistication of their trucks.
Aroyewun further stated that, security operatives stopping trucks on the roads, do not stop the foreign owned trucks hence importers prefer them to avoid their containers being stopped on the road.
“I heard the ES saying vessels are owned by foreigners but I can tell you that in another five years trucks shall be owned by foreigners too.
“Let me use a shipping company for example. They own the terminal, the vessels and they also bring trucks to convey cargoes and the quality of services these trucks offer, no Nigerian services can offer it.
“As much as PSTT has removed FOU from the road, they removed them from Apapa but they are now in Ijesha stopping other people’s vehicles but will not stop these companies’ vehicles even if they are carrying dead bodies.
“Tell me which importers will not patronize them because the importer knows that whatever he has done whether correct or not will not be stopped on the road because of the relationship of his transporter with the Comptroller General or the President if the country.
He also questioned,“Will such importer leave such trucks and come to somebody that has two or three trucks?
“In addition to that, all these vehicles that they own, the moment you are booking their container from the country of origin, they will tell you they will give you demurrage free days if you allow X, Y, Z transport company to load your cargo.
“from Apapa to SIFAX, the 26 checkpoints have been removed, says who? We are in this together. If anybody challenges me, I will mention these 26 points from Apapa to SIFAX outward the port
“And if you have removed them, what about the 220 checkpoints between Amuwo and Apapa Local Government.
“So, what is wrong in the outward is right in the inward. I want to challenge everybody, we will lose this industry, we will lose this business”Aroyewun concluded.