The Nigeria Customs Service has lamented that recently, it's revenue at major commands were dwindling, Shipping Position Daily's DAPO OLAWUNI was able to track down the founder of the National Assoc?iation of Government Approved Freight Forwarders (NAGAFF) Dr. Boniface Aniebonam and he advised the Customs Comptroller General, Col. Hameed Ali (rtd) to embark on consultation with the freight forwarding community. Aniebonam also hammered on the licensing regulation of the customs as an hindrance to its revenue drive.
Sir, freight forwarders have lamented that corruption has increased in customs since Ali came in?
Let such agents come forward and show me as the founder of NAGAFF the people that are corrupt in the port, which customs officer or police officer that have done anything contrary to the rule and see how we would react, the Comptroller General is a human being, he is there in Abuja, if you have no complaints before him, how would he react? Tell such people to bring the matter to me, this is the time for change and we must move away from the old era of doing things, that is why the Comptroller General of Customs is there as an army officer who is brought in to put things in order, and as I am talking to you now there is no Godfather in customs anymore, no officer operating can be referred as ?CG boy right now, every customs officer is doing there job and every agent is doing their jobs, if anybody is acting to the contrary, bring it to us. On the part of NAGAFF, we have established an Anti-corruption unit of NAGAFF headed by Increase Uche, bring the matter to him and let's see how it goes, meanwhile we are finishing our intelligence information on those who are corrupt, both as an agent, as importer, customs officer or any other person operating in the port, as we get these information we report it to the appropriate authority. The customs officers have been asked to fill the asset declaration forms, I heard that some officers were already selling off some of their houses, who are those people and where are the houses? bring it to us, if cannot do that then stop all the blackmail.
The customs have complained about their revenue nose diving, what is your advice for them on how to meet up?
I don't know for how long we would continue to give customs advice, I was the President of NAGAFF some years ago and up till this level we are still giving them advice, the truth is that some of these advice now needs to be paid for, we cannot continue like this, there are certain things I expect people to know, we have written several documents. Why is it that the Comptroller General of Customs, upon all the visitations he has been making, he failed to realise that the most strategic allies he has would be ANLCA, NAGAFF and CRFFN, these are the most strategic partners he needs in order to succeed, has he visited CRFFN, NAGAFF headquarters and ANLCA headquarters? And yet he wants to resolve matters that has to do with customs operations, it is either those advicing him does not know what they are doing or he does not listen, by now I expect him to enter into strategic partnership with the CRFFN, cum NAGAFF and ANLCA, these are the tripods he needed to succeed, but I have seen him visit some parastatals of the government under inter-agency relationship, but it is the other way round because those people need him more, they are not the once he should be visiting because he is doing certain jobs for them as the leader of the port, the port is a Customs port and anything he is doing now, NIMASA, Shippers Council, SON, NAFDAC and others needed the customs to succeed, so Ali should not waste his time by going to visit them, they are the once that should come to him, the people he needed to see are the leadership of the associations and the leadership of CRFFN, let them seat together and look at the licensing regulation of the customs which is a sore point as far as government revenue is concerned, we cannot continue this way, licensing regulation of customs as far as corporate usage is concerned is a huge threat to the revenue functions of the customs and the earlier they go and harmised section 19A and B of the CRFFN Act and Section 153 to 156 of CEMA the better, we must go professional, the biggest problem customs is having in terms of revenue generation is compliance, so who is going to be involved in compliance? It must be an individual and not a corporate body, so why can they listen? Now the customs is talking of giving password to cooperate bodies by next year, this is arrant nonsense. Everyday now you see the Federal Operations Unit intervening and subjecting the gallant officers to hard times, when people are sleeping they are busy moving up and down in the night, they are supposed to be an intervention force, in the past 1976 to 1981, when you hear that Federal Operations is coming, the officer run inside the bush, smugglers run inside the bush, they are like mobile police officers in those days, they are neatly dressed and they carry aura, but today you see them everywhere because the crime is on and on. The ACG Zonal Coordinator was around to talk about the dwindling revenue of the service in Apapa? And so what? The same person when he was the Controller of Apapa Command was so indoctrinated with the licensing regulation of the customs he doesn't believe in what freight forwarding is all about since by their own word, CEMA does not recognise freight forwarding, these are the kind of things you hear from people you thought could give direction, I am an ex-customs officer and I would want to be a party to what will go against the customs, but when you tell them what to do to enhance the situation they would refuse to listen because they are fixated, so why are they now complaining of dwindling revenue? If we continue to use corporate body to license practitioners, it is a cunduit pipe for revenue leakage in customs operations, many of the people that own these licenses you cannot see them, it is only a court of competent jurisdiction that has the powers to unveil a corporate body and know who is behind it, and don't forget that in terms of prosecution, the liability of the company is limited to their assets, so you cannot get anybody to prosecute. So nobody should talk of
dwindling revenue when the cause is within the customs itself and it has to do with the licensing regulations.
What would be your agenda for the new minister of transport?
When he comes to see us then we would be talking about that, he has been appointed as minister of transport and he has his platform, when he puts up his platform we would see it and make inputs, if he needs our assistance we would let him know. He should first of all tell us his agenda because up till now the port has been concessioned and it has not gone through ratification of the National Assembly for years, the concessioning was to enhance efficiency and reduction of cost, but what did we get? When he comes, we will see what to say about it.
There has been serious resistance about Cargo Tracking Note
There is no serious resistance about cargo tracking note, if one or two persons have been paid to go and defend illegality then so be it, but the greater number of people wants cargo tracking note? to take off as fast as possible, especially when it is at no cost, and we are talking about compliance as the major source of revenue leakage in the port, cargo tracking note will address that issue, but nobody wants to listen, those who are against it have a lot to hide, procedurally and professionally, CTN will address the issue of smuggling and protect the interest of government in terms of revenue and enhance trade facilitation, those who are against CTN are those who have something to hide, expecially those enjoying fast track, the organised private sectors, their containers exit the port and go directly to their warehouse, the customs go there and carryout examination and nobody knows what happens after, so all they would do is blackmail the proponents of the CTN, but government would not listen to all these trash. Many great minds have approved the CTN; NAGAFF, Importers Association led by Chief Osita Okereke, Harmonised Trade Association in Kano, and all the freight forwarding associations.
Discussion about this post