About seven months after it first granted provisional licenses to all freight forwarding associations, the Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarding in Nigeria (CRFFN) last week withdrew the provisional licenses which it earlier gave to the National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders, the National Council of Managing Directors of Licensed Customs Agents, Association of Registered Freight Forwarders (AREFF) and National Association Air Freight and Consolidators (NAFAC). At the end of its first council meeting in Abuja last Thursday, the CRFFN governing council upheld that it was only Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA) that met the council’s criteria as spelt out in its guidelines. Sources at the meeting which was also attended by national presidents of NAGAFF, Mr Eugene Nweke and his Council of Managing Directors counterpart, Chief Festus Ejiofor confirmed to our correspondent that the duo were shocked at the verdict of the Council which was based on the recommendations of a panel headed by Chief Peter Obih and whose committee was mandated to visit the secretariat of all the five associations in Lagos and in other places across the country. The chairman of the CRFFN governing council, Alhaji Hakeem Olanrewaju confirmed the council’s decision to our correspondent over the weekend and disclosed that the four associations have been given six months within which to comply with the criteria. He disclosed that there was a guideline for the associations to comply with and that it was only ANLCA that met the criteria. “It was the decision of the council that they did not meet the criteria based on the guidelines that were set and which were approved and also made available to all the associations”, he explained. He assured that any of the four associations which was able to meet the criteria would be given final registration as a freight forwarding association. He also disclosed that about 3,570 individuals and 871 corporate organisations applied for registration as freight forwarders and that officially, the new register of freight forwarders has been approved by the council in line with the Act which established the CRFFN. But, the national president of NAGAFF, Mr Nweke told our correspondent that it was a majority decision. “They gave us six months, no problems, but I am not particularly happy that the Council rated us as not qualified alongside associations like AREFF for instance”, he disclosed. Nweke wondered why the committee faulted NAGAFF on the criteria which they know that it met, even as he disclosed that the criteria are: possession of functional national secretariat, geographical spread, association’s constitution, possession of utility vehicles among others He however reminded our correspondent that he was not in the CRFFN as national president of NAGAFF, but a nominee of the minister of transport representing the South- East geopolitical zone in line with the CRFFN Act. ”We won’t condemn it entirely, but we will work within the six months grace period, it is a council decision, but we are not very comfortable with the assessment”, he maintained. Shipping Position Weekly confirmed at the weekend that altogether, a total of 3,570 individuals applied for registration, while 875 companies also applied. Out of the 3570 individuals, only 973 scaled through, while 1,603 have their application pending, but are likely to be approved by March. However, a total of 994 applicants may have had their names drooped from the register because apart from making payments, they did not come forward for registration and verification and there were no documents to back their claims. Similarly, a total of 871 corporate organisations applied for registration, out of which only 273 scaled through, while 322 applications are still been considered and may be released by March. 275 applications were dropped also in similar circumstances like what happened to individual applicants who suffered the same fate
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