Clearing agents operating at the Tin Can Island Port have again raised alarm over alleged continuous harassment and extortion by officers attached to the Area ‘B’ police command.
One of the aggrieved agents, John Lushmann complained to SHIPS & PORTS DAILY yesterday that the intimidation and extortion has become a daily occurrence especially at the Coconut bus- stop area of the port.
He said because the area is close to the port environment where banks and Direct Trader Input (DTI) cafes are located for agents to capture their jobs and pay duty, the officers usually demand money from them especially when they see them with documents.
He said depending on the amount of money that an agent has on him, the police officers ask for “settlement” ranging from N10,000 to N50,000.
“When they see you with documents and the volume of money for duty payments, they will start asking you irrelevant questions. After a while, they take you to their bus and start asking you for money,” he said.
Lushmann said if the excesses of the police operatives are not quickly curtailed, the 48-hour cargo clearance target of the Federal government “will never be achieved”.
Copyright Ships & Ports Ltd. Permission to use quotations from this article is granted subject to appropriate credit given to www.shipsandports.com.ng as the source.
