Anxiety At Tin Can Port As Customs Scanning Machines Packs Up

There is palpable anxiety at the Tin Can Island port in Lagos as importers and their clearing agents could not get their cargoes scanned for release due to the epileptic scanning machines manned by the Nigeria Customs Service.

Shipping Position Daily gathered that anger is building up gradually at the port because customs could only scan about 20 containers daily, out of the more than 100 containers that were scheduled to go through scanning daily.

Some freight forwarders have also alleged that the customs is demanding N30,000 in order to reroute the trapped containers from scanning to physical examination, a process which according to them, should not attract any fee.

It would be recalled that when the Customs took over destination inspection functions from the service providers, the Comptroller General of Customs, Alhaji Dikko Inde Abdullahi had promised to import 50 new scanners, but these are yet to be seen.

Sources confirmed to us that when the scanning limitation started at the Tin Can Scanning 1 site few weeks ago, the customs had written all stakeholders to crave their understanding.

Secretary of Tin Can Chapter of Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA) Mr. David Chucks Kanikwu confirmed to our correspondent last week that customs had written the association that it has been overwhelmed by its scanning functions.

Kanikwu confirmed that, "there is scanning limitation at the Tin Can Port of which customs wrote a letter and copied us, sighting the limit to which they can scan"

"The number of containers per day has overwhelmed what their capacity could take. This means that if they have hundred containers, they can only scan twenty containers.

"One would have expected the custom management to profile more of their items on physical examination, this is a teething period from the old RAR to the PAAR, and for cross checking on values and items declared, physical examination will be the best" he said

Kanikwu blamed the situation on the faulty structure that brought in the service providers saying that nobody was able to examine the kind of scanners they imported. According to him, the imagery of the scanners at Tin Can port is very poor and this was why it placed several cargoes under suspect.

He advised that if customs must maintain the scanning regime, they are supposed to get modern updated scanners that are highly computerized.

He also advised that the customs should get fixed scanners which will ensure that cargoes are scanned directly as they discharged from the ships, this according to him will aid the clearance process.

However, reacting to allegations of bribery by customs before it could reroute the trapped containers to physical examination, image maker of the Tin Can Customs, Mr. Chris Osunkwo debunked the allegations.

Osunkwo described freight forwarders making such allegations as touts.

He said "95% of the people you find in Tin Can as agents are touts, we will be very much interested for the person that made the allegation to come and explain".

According to him, it is possible for agents to reroute their containers from scanning to physical examination without complications because physical examination is the highest risk level on the ladder.

"If for any reason you want your cargo to be rerouted, you have to write to the Area Controller, stating reasons", he explained.

He reiterated that: "There are lots of touts here who are big boys, they drive the best cars, they dress well, but it is not by their size, they are still touts. The real agents will not tell you customs collect money for selectivity; it is not determined by customs".