The National Vice President of the Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA) Dr. Kayode Farinto, has urged the federal government to consider the removal of duties on newer imported vehicles,as a means of stopping vehicle smuggling in the country.
Farinto who said this in a chat with newsmen last week at Tin Can Island ports, Lagos also said that the move would encourage Nigerian vehicle importers to start patronizing the seaports.
“What the government should have done is to look at the newer vehicles, remove the levy on them. That is the only thing that can encourage them to bring in newer vehicles through the seaports, because most of the people that are bringing in these vehicles through the bush paths, it is the levy that is actually driving them into doing that because they are supposed to pay 35% duty and 35% levy, that is 70%”
“Where is that one happening? Even with the 25% penalty levy, it still favours them particularly the newer vehicles there because in the port here, you will pay 35% duty and 35% levy and what it means is that if you are bringing in your vehicle, maybe 2019 model, you pay 35% duty and 25% levy as penalty”
He reiterated the need for the government to create enabling environment for automobile importers even as he added that there is high importation of ‘accidented’ vehicles due to the high rate and duties payable on imported newer vehicles.
“Government should begin to create enabling environment and one of the enabling environment is by crushing out the levy on new vehicles. If you look at what is happening now, the rate at which we are importing used vehicles particularly accidented vehicles is increasing because the duty payable on newer vehicle is too astronomical, it is killing the economy”
“Government should just abrogate the levy so that people will now come back to the seaport. The moment this is announced, I assure you that more than 70% of these people will divert their vehicle importation back to the ports”, he submitted.
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