The Nigerian Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) has narrated how it foiled an attempt by a suspected ritualist to send the corpse of a one-year-old baby through a courier.
Ibrahim Bako, the Coordinator, NURTW, Area 1, Garki, Federal Capital Territory (FCT), gave the account in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja.
Bako said the suspect attempted to send a parcel concealing the baby’s corpse to Gwagwalada, a satellite town in the territory.
He was speaking on the experiences of some of the union members registered to operate courier and logistics services.
He said: “From our previous experiences, we have seized cocaine and other hard drugs
“We have also discovered a corpse of a year-old baby being sent to Gwagwalada in the FCT as well as two rifles, among others.
“The contrabands and the persons who came to send them were handed over to the police.
“Some of the suspected criminals are still in prison.”
NAN reports that transporters who are registered with the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) and obtained a licence from the Courier Regulatory Department of the Nigerian Postal Service are allowed to operate courier and logistics services.
Bako stressed the importance of following the right channels in courier and logistics services delivery.
According to him, NURTW members engaging in the services always ensured that only genuine parcels were collected from the senders.
He added that any goods tampered with did not follow the right path.
Bako said: “Some will not come to our office but prefer sending their items through our drivers to other destinations by giving them small amounts of money.
“Automatically, that is not proper, there is something hidden there.
“However, if we suspect a parcel possibly contains contraband like hard drugs or illegal arms, we will ask the person to open it for scrutiny.
“If there is no illegal item, we will close it back and send it.”
Furthermore, Chike Okoro, the General Manager of Jokimna Motor Limited, Jabi, FCT, said the company always uses the right measure to curtail, fight, or prevent issues of tampering with customers’ parcels and goods.
According to Okoro, people fall victim to criminal activities while patronising roadside drivers because of their charges, which tend to be lesser than their corporate companies.
Some FCT residents who spoke to NAN on the matter said they usually receive their parcels and other messages intact and timely, especially by tracking the movement before arrival.
Sade Ojuola, a public servant, said she has never had any bad experience of missing items since using courier services.
According to her, the deployment of tracking technology has really helped courier services nationwide to boost customer confidence in them.
Ojuola said: “More than three years now, I have been using them and the experiences have been so fantastic.
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“Anything sent to me, not only that I receive them intact, but also timely.
“Immediately I order anything, I monitor them and track them on my phone how they are moving.”
Also speaking with NAN, Christian Chukwudi, a cloth seller, praised transport companies engaged in Bus Cargo Service for helping his business to grow by reducing his frequent traveling across the country.
According to him, he purchases goods from different regions in Nigeria and safely receives them via bus cargo services in Abuja to sell.
Chukwudi said: “I am a businessman.
“I major in men’s clothes.
“I used to travel to Lagos and Onitsha nearly every two weeks before to buy my clothing materials.
“Since I started ordering my goods by bus cargo service, I seldom travel now.
“Maybe once every three months.
“And the deliveries have been so easy and reliable.
“More than five years now, neither my waybills nor transported goods have ever been tampered with.”
A dispatch rider of Dominion Logistics, who preferred anonymity, told NAN that proper training would sustain effectiveness and transparency of courier services.
NAN.
