The failure of importers of rice through land borders to pay adequate import duty on the commodity has been blamed for the ban of its importation through that route by the Federal Government.
While rice importers who use seaports pay as much as N6Million as duty, their counterparts at the land borders were paying a paltry N1.3Million.
The failure of importers of rice through land borders to pay adequate import duty on the commodity has been blamed for the ban of its importation through that route by the Federal Government.
While rice importers who use seaports pay as much as N6Million as duty, their counterparts at the land borders were paying a paltry N1.3Million.
This revelation was made on Monday by the national president, Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA), Prince Olayiwola Shittu when he led members of the association’s national executives on a working visit to the Seme border.
While responding to requests that were made by members of his association at the Seme border that he should assist in the lobby that government should reverse its decision to ban importation of rice through land borders, the ANLCA president confirmed that the association’s leadership has been under pressure to prevail on the on government to remove the ban.
He confirmed that the argument was that policy on rice importation or ban should be universal, that is, if rice is allowed to be imported into the country from one entry point, it should be allowed from other entry points; land border, inclusive.
Shittu told the clearing agents, that “the ban is from the seat of the president and their reason is that while the duty for a container of rice from the ports is N6 million, Seme border was paying N1.3 million before the ban importation of rice through the land borders, so that means revenue flight.”
When asked if they were willing to pay what importers of rice through sea ports pay as duty, the clearing agents replied in the affirmative. He consequently assured them that her would take their plea to the federal government.
The ANLCA president and his team were in Seme as part of the nationwide visitation to all the association’s chapters.
Highlight of the visit was the issuance of the association’s biometric identification cards to members at the Seme border.
The ceremony was performed by the ANLCA President with the assistance of the Customs Area Controller of Seme border command, Alhaji A.S. Sahabi.
Speaking on the benefits of the identity card, Prince Shittu said from next year any member that is enlisted into the Biometric Identity Card Scheme would be entitled to an insurance claims of N1 million in case of permanent disability or death.
He disclosed that the biometric identity card also serves as an ATM Card which every registered Customs broker can use to operate the cashless banking system that was recently introduced by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in Lagos.
He explained that a registered member can use the card to pay his custom duties and all import processing fees, saying that to reactivate the card’s e-payment system, the member would have to pay N2000 fee at the point of collection of the identity card.
The ANLCA President also assured the members of the association that once the Customs brokers’ official professional fees and charges is gazette by the Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarding in Nigeria (CRFFN), members would start to earn their deserved income instead of the current practice where agents slave for importers and other port operators.
Shipping Position Daily recalls that Nigeria currently imports about three million metric tons of rice valued at N468 billion ($3 billion), but President Goodluck Jonathan has promised to ban its importation soon.
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