The Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarding in Nigeria (CRFFN) is galvanizing practitioners to seek inclusion in the board of the Nigeria Customs Service(NCS).
The move is one of the highpoints of the meeting of Freight Forwarders Consultative Forum meeting which held in Lagos last week.
The meeting which was attended by the leadership of all the freight forwarding associations in Nigeria, was presided over by the chairman of the forum; Chief Henry Njoku. It was also attended by the Chairman of the CRFFN governing council; Alhaji Abubakar Tsani as well as the Council’s Registrar, Mr Samuel Nwakohu.
Galvanizing discussions at the meeting, Chief Njoku stated that there had been pervious moves towards inclusion of freight forwarders in the board of the Nigeria Customs Service. But he sought a fresh mandate from the freight forwarders present for the governing council to commence the lobby. He was overwhelming supported by all the attendees.
Leading the discussions, Njoku said that on several occasions, the Customs had taken decision that are meant to affect the businesses of freight forwarders, especially customs licensed agents. He lamented that such decisions were taken without consultations.
He said that a representation of customs licensed agent from the CRFFN on the Board of the Nigeria Customs Service will protect the interest of practitioners.
The freight forwarders also insisted on implementation of the section of the CRFFN Act which requires that Customs should demand confirmation of membership of CRFFN from licensed Customs agents before issuance or renewal of their operational license
On his part, Chairman of the CRFFN governing council; Alhaji Abubakar Tsani appealed to freight forwarders to be united and speak with one voice.
Read Also: NDLEA Arrests Freight Forwarder In Connection With Seized 442 Parcels Of Crystal Meth In Heads Of Smoked Fish
According to him, it is only in freight forwarding that there is discordance of opinions, whereas other professionals speak with one voice.
He stated that the changes that are expected in the industry can only come if freight forwarders unite.
“We need this Consultative Forum to speak with one voice, we will give you all the support you need to achieve this”, he assured.
While also contributing to the meeting, Registrar of the CRFFN, Mr Nwakohu disclosed that he recently led the Council’s management team on a visit to the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) to strengthen collaboration and further ensure professionalism.
He said the visit was to ensure that only duly-registered freight forwarding companies are registered by the CAC.
According to him, what the visit means is that, if a company seeks registration as a freight forwarding firm, the CAC will require the prospective company to submit evidence of registration with the CRFFN.
Kindly like us on Facebook/twitter
