Even though it was roundly opposed by stakeholders when the idea was muted again in 2009, collection of wharf landing fees has become a reality and a part of the revenue that is payable by all importers who use Lagos ports to ship their consignments into Nigeria.
Wharf Landing Fees was created by Act of the Lagos State House of Assembly after it quietly passed the bill into law on March 2, 2009. It was later to be signed into law by the state Governor; Mr Babatunde Fashola a few weeks after the lawmakers completed their work.
Although, on paper, the law empowers local governments under whose jurisdiction the cargo passes through to their final destination to collect varied amount on such goods, but in reality, it is not the local government(s) that collect. The state government actually collects the fees through a private firm.
In all is ramifications, the law is a replica of what the Apapa local government attempted to introduce in 2001, but which did not succeed. History will bear us witness that during the tenure of Chief Ojo Maduekwe as transport minister and Alhaji Munir Muse as the chairman of Apapa local government, the duo battled each other for and against wharf landing fees.
Alhaji Muse; now a Senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria representing Lagos state had used his experience as a former port manager in charge of Container Terminal Port in Apapa, Lagos to attempt to take advantage of the relative newness of the democratic dispensation at that time to force wharf landing fees down the throat of importers.
He relied on the fact that the way the Presidency was structured at that time was such that the office of the vice president related directly with the local governments. He had a double advantage in the fact that he was well informed enough to canvass it and he also used the fact that the then-vice president, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar has tremendous background in port operations; being a former top customs officer.
Muse’s manoeuvrings almost caused the then-minister of transport, chief Maduekwe his job as he was not favourably disposed to imposition of any additional levy on Nigerian importers.
At one of the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meetings, the issue of wharf landing fees was tabled, and the minister was given the opportunity to defend his anti-wharf landing fees campaign and he was able to convince the Council of the dangers inherent in allowing it. And so, the idea died.
But nine years later and with both Atiku and Maduekwe out of the way, it was once resurrected in Lagos and his time around, it scaled through and even though, there were apprehensions that other states in which ports are located may copy Lagos and also introduce their own levies, but this has not happened.
From the feelers that we are getting, every member of the shipping community; especially the importers have come to accept the reality of the levy. However, we worried that for all the period that wharf landing fees have been collected in Lagos, government has not found a decent and modern way of ensuring payment rather the use of crude force.
On daily basis, one sees fierce-looking young men wearing different and armed with nail-studded planks and tree stubs at some strategic corners Apapa. Their duty is to force drivers of container-laden trucks to pay the wharf landing fees on the container that they are conveying. More often, in the process fight ensues between the duty collectors and the truck driver and the licensed customs.
Revenue collection in a state like Lagos should be modernized. It is the duty of the consultants to ensure a more dignifying way of collecting the revenue.
Finally and very importantly, one of the reasons that were given to justify wharf landing fees by the state government was that its proceeds will be used to provide more infrastructures in the city and especially in areas close to the ports. Surprisingly however, virtually all internal road networks in Apapa are in a terrible shape. So what happens to the Millions (or Billions) of Naira that may have accrued from wharf landing fees since its introduction in 2009.
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