Customs releases impounded trucks after CGC’s intervention at bonded terminal

By Godwin Oritse

The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has released 36 trucks belonging to members of the Association of Maritime Truck Owners (AMATO) that were impounded during an investigation into alleged trade infractions at Zarmmak Bonded Terminal in the Amuwo Odofin area of Lagos.

The trucks were detained by Customs Police attached to the Zone ‘A’ Federal Operations Unit (FOU) after the terminal was sealed over suspected violations of Customs regulations.

While the nature of the alleged infractions has not been disclosed by the Service, the incident disrupted trucking operations and raised concerns among transport operators over mounting business losses.

The Secretary-General of AMATO, Mr. Sani Mohammed, confirmed the release of the trucks, attributing the development to the intervention of the Comptroller-General of Customs (CGC), Adewale Adeniyi, following repeated appeals by the Association. According to him, the affected truck owners maintained that they had no involvement in the alleged infractions under investigation and should not bear the consequences of actions linked to the terminal’s operations.

“The intervention of the Comptroller-General has brought significant relief to our members who had suffered avoidable financial losses as a result of the prolonged detention of their trucks,” Mohammed said.

In a statement, AMATO expressed appreciation to the Customs boss for what it described as a prompt and compassionate response that demonstrated the Service’s commitment to trade facilitation and stakeholder engagement.

The association said the release of the trucks would enable affected operators to resume business and minimise the financial impact of the disruption.

Commenting on the enforcement action, the Controller in charge of Zone ‘A’ Federal Operations Unit, Comptroller Aliyu Gambo, said the operation was carried out to ensure compliance with extant Customs laws.

Efforts to obtain comments from the management of Zarmmak Bonded Terminal were unsuccessful, while calls and text messages sent to the FOU Controller before filing this report were not responded to.