By Steve Agbota
styvenchy@yahoo.com
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For years, state and non-state actors alike have turned port access roads into lucrative cash cows, exploiting truckers through the unchecked collection of illegal levies.
The ugly situation took a toll on many Nigerians and drove up the cost of doing business.
At times, these unlawful levy collections spiraled into violent clashes involving hoodlums, security operatives, and truck drivers. Many drivers sustained serious injuries, while some tragically lost their lives in the chaos fueled by extortion. Exploiting the persistent gridlock on port corridors, both state and non-state actors used the situation as cover for their illicit activities. However, following sustained investigative reports by the Daily Sun exposing these practices, the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) and the Lagos State Government stepped in. Their intervention, which included clearing the notorious gridlock on the port access roads, brought significant relief, leading to a sharp reduction in extortion and the dismantling of illegal checkpoints along the port axis.
Despite the reduction in extortion, there are still some checkpoints within and outside the Apapa logistics rings where truck drivers face extortion despite possessing valid call-ups to access the ports.
Daily Sun gathered that truck drivers accessing Lagos ports may soon find relief from years of harassment and the burden of multiple illegal levies, with the introduction of a harmonised daily charge designed to regulate both receipted and unreceipted payments imposed on them. Stakeholders have since applauded the Lagos State Truck and Cargo Operators Committee (LASTCOC) for taking this decisive step toward tackling the long-standing menace.
Before the intervention, truckers plying routes from Apapa to destinations like Ikorodu were often forced to part with between N30,000 and N40,000 in multiple payments to different local government agents and roadside gangs.
Speaking on the development, a chieftain and member of the committee, Mr. Seyi Adekanbi, pointed out that while incidents of extortion by hoodlums and multiple checkpoints along port access roads have not been completely eradicated, there has been a significant decline compared to what it used to be in the past.
Addressing the multiple payments, he said that LASTCOC has now introduced a harmonised levy of N3,000 per truck, payable once per day, which covers the entire journey without further payments at any point.
“Once you pay it in a day, you don’t pay anywhere else. In fact, the truckers have not had it so good,” he stated.
He, however, admitted that some pockets of resistance still exist, particularly at night, when hoodlums take advantage of limited security coverage.
According to him, these lingering challenges are being tackled gradually through targeted enforcement, with zonal leaders mobilising security agents to intervene whenever incidents occur.
He said the proceeds from the harmonised levy are used to sustain enforcement operations, including logistics for rapid response and police deployment to trouble spots.
He stressed that the committee’s long-term goal is to eliminate thuggery and illegal toll collection on port access roads across Lagos State, ensuring a safer and more predictable environment for truckers and cargo operators.
Conversely, he revealed that the body is currently running at a financial deficit despite the introduction of a harmonised N3,000 daily levy for trucks.
He added that the committee had deliberately discouraged the practice of stopping trucks on the road to collect dues, instead advocating that payments be made at designated terminals. However, he lamented that most terminals have not been cooperating, making it difficult to collect the necessary levies to fund enforcement operations.
“Thank God, members of the committee are people of means; that is why we have been able to stay afloat. For now, we are operating largely from our individual resources. We can’t allow ourselves to go back to the old days of harassment and illegal toll collection, so we are working around the clock to find sustainable solutions,” he explained.
Meanwhile, the Secretary General of the Association of Maritime Truck Owners (AMATO), Mr. Muhammed Sani Bala, noted that a series of complaints from trucking unions and associations had prompted a coordinated response aimed at eliminating obstacles that hinder cargo evacuation and frustrate ease of doing business at the ports.
According to Muhammed, these interventions have led to a significant reduction in the activities of what he described as governmental and non-governmental extor[ktion bandits who had previously mounted multiple checkpoints on logistics corridors.
“This proactive approach has brought about a notable decline in the number of illegal roadblocks targeting truckers. However, the problem has not been completely eradicated.
“There are still some checkpoints within and outside the Apapa logistics rings where our members face extortion despite possessing valid call-ups to access the ports,” he added.
The AMATO secretary general said that the association remains committed to eradicating the menace, pledging continued engagement with relevant authorities and collaboration with other stakeholders until extortion on the port access roads is reduced to the barest minimum.
He, however, dismissed claims regarding any alleged sharing formula among union groups, stating that he did not know such arrangements.
Also speaking, a truck owner, Collins Dike, said extortion is still ongoing along the port access road, saying the difference is that the people collecting the illegal money are no longer as bold as they used to be, but they are still extorting truckers.
He said the perpetrators do carry out the extortion in skeletal ways, but there is still the presence of extortionists, especially around the Kirikiri axis, Amuwo Odofin axis, and Badagry expressway, saying they are a bit fearful and sketchy; they are mostly active at night.
“Most of these extortionists claimed to belong to the Road Transport Employers Association of Nigeria and the NURTW, and they also always claim that they are registered by the law. That they are registered by the Labour Congress and the Trade Union Congress. This is what they told us whenever we accosted them. They even say every truck on the roads belongs to them, which I found funny,” he said.
A truck driver who spoke with Daily Sun, Kolade Habeeb, said that the harmonised levies will fizzle out the extortion along the port access roads and other marketplaces in Lagos if the government can support truckers to implement and make it effective.
“I commend the committee that introduced the harmonised levies because if it works, it will be a welcome development. It means we are free from harassment by extortion bandits, and at least we will be able to take home something to feed our family. But the new system still needs the backing of the government to work effectively,” he said.
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