Total revenue generated by the Ports and Terminal Multiservices Ltd. (PTML) Command of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) in 2015 fell by 32 per cent to N63.18 billion.
The Public Relations Officer of the command, Mr Steve Okonmah, stated this last week in Lagos in an interview with newsmen.
Okonmah told NAN that the command recorded N91.45 billion in 2014.
He attributed the short fall in revenue to the 2015 election and the “auto policy`’.
Okonmah said the auto policy had a “devastating’’ effect on the economy.
“PTML is strictly a Roll On Roll Off (RORO) vehicle port and the short fall in cargo throughput accounted for the decrease in revenue in 2015.
“In 2013, Roll On Roll Off vehicles were 172, 174 units; in 2014, there were 129,361 units and in 2015, the Roll On Roll Off vehicles were 66,823 units.
“Also in 2013, the command received 111,414 containers, had 99,706 containers in 2014; and 38, 343 containers in 2015.
“The command will not relent in its effort in assisting the Comptroller-General of Customs, Hameed Ali to achieve his mandate, “ Okonmah told NAN.
He said that there was need for government to review the auto policy to enable more cars come through Nigerian ports.
Okonmah expressed concern about the bad state of the port access road and urged the government to look into the problem..
According to him, people spent a lot of hours on the road before coming into the ports.
He said that clearing agents had few activities to do recently at the ports because most cars had been diverted to Cotonou Port in Republic of Benin.
Okonmah urged clearing agents to continue with the spirit of high level compliance which had enabled them to clear cargoes in less than 12 hours.
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