From Judex Okoro, Calabar
The president of Delivery Vehicle Owners and Drivers Association of Nigeria (DELVAN), Comrade Sabbastine Raphael, has stated that illegal road blocks mounted across major highways is responsible for high cost of foodstuffs in the country.
Conrade Raphael, who stated this while fielding questions from newsmen in Calabar at the weekend, maintained that these road blocks, that kept increasing on a daily basis from state to state, also slow down traveling time for the haulage companies.
He said the road blocks are allegedly mounted by some security agencies and revenue collectors to aimed at extorting money from transporters.
He disclosed that in each of these road blocks, its members and others who offer such services are made to part with bewteen N3000 and N6000 before being allowed to pass through.
According to him, “what our members in particular used to experience is that of multiple taxation, but we have been able to streamline this with the States. Our challenges now is that of road blocks.
“From our neighbouring Benue State to Calabar for instance, there are more than 40 check points and in each of these checking points, we are made to part with minimum of N5,000.
“There is also this particular check point at Mbok junction going to Ebonyi from Cross River, the police officers here will make you to according to the number of bags of rice, beans or garri you are carrying.
“For instance, if you are carrying like 20 bags of garri, you will be asked to pay N2000 per bag. We have complained about this to the relevant authorities severally but the situation remains the same.”
Raphael said that DELVAN with 16,000 membership strength welcome the planned tooling of some highways, disclosing that the association plan to construct modern trailer parks in all the 36 states of the federation even as they have five of such parks in Cross River, Rivers and Benue states.
He commended President Muhammadu Buhari for the improved security on the nation’s highways.