BY GODWIN OBI
The Founder of the National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders (NAGAFF), Dr. Boniface Aniebonam has extolled valid remedial measures taken by the Apapa Customs Command to stem the excesses of bonded terminal operators.
The Anambra state born freight forwarder, in a statement made available to National Light, noted that the Service idea of stemming vessels and lading containers outside the mother ports is essentially a trade facilitation tool to avoid and mitigate demurrages that may arise from associated delays of ports congestion.
Dr. Aniebonam noted that the whole idea of ports reform is to increase competitiveness and efficiency in doing business in the Customs ports, regretting however that the whole idea is being defeated by the partial compliant attitude of most of the terminal operators to providing adequate equipment for cargo handling.
According to the NAGAFF founder, “Flagrant breaches of the terms of licensing regulations resulted in grave dangers to government revenue and security of the state. The most worrisome is avoidable exposure of officers and men of the Service detailed to serve in those terminals to the angry practitioners who believe that the Customs are not addressing the incompetences of the terminal operators.
“The avoidable consequences of improper Customs examination resulting from unavailability of adequate equipment for cargo operations in the various terminals have pitched the freight forwarding practitioners against the intervention forces of the Nigeria Customs Service along the city roads and federal highways”, he said.
Aniebonam noted that the inherent consequences of untrue declaration for Customs purposes became exposed 100% through the intervention of the third force of the Customs Service on city roads, remarking that all these would have been avoided and saved freight forwarding practitioners the agony of double handling of goods cleared out of Customs control at FOU depot.
He however regretted that the presence of FOU, CGC Strike-force and the Customs/ Police on our roads will continue to be felt so long as cases of improper cargo examination persist
“Under the circumstance we congratulate the Comptroller of Customs Apapa Command for taking strategic actions to call the terminal operators concerned to order. It is our hope that other Customs Area Commands at the various seaports should take responsibility to ensure uniformity to enforce regulations.
“At the moment, it is to our knowledge that the Apapa Comptroller has stopped, forthwith, any transfer of cargo to the affected terminals. He has also threatened to evoke section 11 of Customs laws dealing on matters of obstruction of lawful duty of an officer of the service in the Customs ports. It means that the service may decide to take their actions from the criminal point of view and that may be terrible”, Aniebonam stated.
Dr. Aniebonam noted that at Apapa Port, the Customs Comptroller was equally taking up on acts of systemic corruption, saying that all human element trade barriers were being dismantled to give way for the collection of appropriate Customs revenue and facilitation of legitimate trade.
He further remarked that in response to the new order in Apapa Port, the Compliance Team of NAGAFF was very grateful to the Comptroller of Apapa Port because freight forwarding practitioners are beginning to appreciate the need for total compliance with international trade regulations in the Customs ports.
According to the NAGAFF founder, “There is nothing difficult in doing business with the Customs if only practitioners can see reasons to make genuine and honest declarations for Customs purposes.
“NAGAFF is, therefore, urging every freight forwarding practitioners to follow the standard operating conditions in doing business with the Customs and other related government agencies assigned to ports operations. Let us learn to approach equity with clean hands so that NAGAFF can defend its members boldly before the government authorities at all times”, Aniebonam passionately appealed.
He finally called on Terminal Operators to try as much as possible to provide adequate equipment for cargo examination.
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