During his presidential campaign rally in Apapa on Tuesday, Dr. Kayode Farinto, one of the candidates running for the Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA) presidency, expressed determination to establish an Institute of Customs Brokerage.
This is even as declared that it is a misnomer for ANLCA to be affiliated with the Council for the Regulations of Freight Forwarding in Nigeria (CRFFN).
Farinto, while addressing the audience, mentioned that the CRFFN has been taken over by the Federal Government, making it unsuitable for ANLCA members to belong to the council. He pointed out that the original intention of creating the CRFFN has been compromised, with the Federal government appointing 17 members while only 15 are elected.
Furthermore, Farinto raised concerns about the current structure within the industry, where various sectors such as freight forwarders, customs brokers, logistics suppliers, consolidators, and warehouse owners are all combined under one umbrella. He argued that this approach makes it challenging to differentiate between different roles, leading to unfair treatment of professionals.
As an example, he highlighted that customs brokers, like himself, pay significantly higher fees for licensing and operations compared to other industry players.
To address these issues, Farinto proposed the establishment of an independent institute of customs brokerage exclusively focused on the needs and challenges of customs brokers. He cited the practices of advanced countries where such institutes exist and emphasized that pursuing this initiative would be a priority, if elected as ANLCA’s President.
“It’s a misnomer for members of ANLCA to belong to CRFFN, as the original intention of CRFFN has been hijacked by the Federal government. The composition of CRFFN shows that the Federal government appoints 17 members while we elect 15.”
“In the industry, we have various sectors like freight forwarders, customs brokers, logistics suppliers, consolidators, and warehouse owners, but everything has been lumped together. This makes it difficult to differentiate between professionals.
For instance, I pay N250,000 yearly to renew my license and an additional N15,000 at each command. On the other hand, someone else only pays N7,000 to register with the Corporate Affairs Commission. We are not the same. That’s why we want our own institute of customs brokerage to take care of customs brokers alone, just like advanced countries do. This is what we will pursue, God willing,” he said.
Among his campaign promises, Farinto vowed to work closely with the Federal government to secure a 1% allocation from the duty generated by customs brokers. He stated that this allocation would be utilized to benefit ANLCA members and tackle operational challenges arising from government policies.
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