By AsuquoNuwak
Apapa chapter chairman, National Council of Managing Directors of Licensed Customs Agents (NCMDLCA), Comrade Emeka Enwelu has said that the low level of business activities experienced at Lagos Ports is as a result of various factors ranging from foreign exchange policy issues, system failure, poor port access roads, institutional failure, infrastructural failure, as well as attitude and behaviour of operators in the maritime industry.
Comrade Enwelu said that the so called executive order on the ease of doing business and 24 hour cargo clearance in the ports can only be achieved if operational challenges and issues are addressed with immediate effect.
Licensed customs agents from various associations are accusing concessionaires especially APMT of highhandedness and other practices such as delays arising from positioning of containers for customs examination, demurrage charges during holiday periods, refusal of empty containers which create room for extortion. Additional charges are incurred by importers and agents through container deposit for not dropping empty containers in good time.
They observed that APMT always shuts it doors daily as early as 4:00pm thereby preventing agents from writing their terminal delivery order and printing of exit notes. Enwelu stated that the essence of the executive order given to the entire port users is predicated on the need to enhance trade facilitation and ensure quick cargo clearance, quick turnaround time of vessels, reduction of cargo dwelling time at the ports. He also said there is a need for the government to address the infrastructural challenges. He noted that the infrastructural issues have negatively affected service delivery and its contribution to economic development.
‘’this is the right time for the government to address the critical issue of infrastructure in the maritime sector, especially at the seaport; of utmost importance is the scanning service’. Most scanners at the port are either completely broken down or functioning below installed capacity. This situation has subjected Nigeria customs service and other agencies to a hundred percent examination of cargos with a lot of time wasted in the process of cargos clearance in the ports.He urged the government to consider the provision of scanning service as this will really make the port reform system more efficient. He noted that a good chunk of the problems at the nation’s seaport would be solved if the issues of multiple alerts, Transire application and procurement of PAAR operation are addressed. He believed that a sound maritime system can only be achieved when substantial and fundamental port reforms are implemented and sustained.
By the virtue of the agreement entered into with the government, the terminal operators are not supposed to adjust their charges without due process and without additional service to justify the increase in charges.
Though, the port has witnessed tremendous transformations but at a very high cost. In order to avoid arbitrary port charges, importers have been forced to divert cargo to neighboring countries. The trading public knew nothing about the concessioning agreements.
The concessionaires were given blank cheques and they fully exploited the pitfalls in the agreement. There has been increase in the port charges from 2006 to 2018 without the stakeholders input. The storage and terminal handling charges are increased. Also delivery charges, agency charges, customs examination charges and progressive storage charges has created problem in many dimension. According to the NCMDLCA Apapa boss, the main purpose of concessioning was to make the port competitive and efficient but instead of achieving efficiency and competitiveness, a recent survery presented Nigeria as the costliest port in west and central African sub-region.
He said the main idea behind the privatization of Nigeria ports Authority (NPA) in March 2006 was to improve port efficiency and increase cargo throughput. “The absence of an economic port regulator in the concessioning agreement has largely generated a lot of problems in cargo clearance as importers and agents are compelled to regularly protest the arbitrary port charges. After several protests and court action, government finally decided to appoint Nigeria shippers’ council as port economic regulator in 2015.
“The pertinent question is has the Port economic regulator made the difference? How far have they gone in that capacity? Your guest is as good as mine,” Comrade Enwelu noted.
Also the Nigeria Custom Service unwittingly created a number of operational challenges such as non-uniformity in the issuance of ex-factory prices on vehicle, penalty on trade disputes, and accumulation of good seized by custom, undue delays associated with disputes, valuation of imported goods and restriction of certain trade good through the port.” He recommends regular stakeholders meeting where issues affecting the industry will be discussed and implemented.
Above all, he urged ports economic reforms committee; under the Vice -President Prof. YemiOsibanjo to address the infrastructural decay and outrageous charges imposed on importers and customs licensed agents by shipping companies and terminal operators without due process as given on the ease of doing business in the ports.
