Many have called for the appointment of Minister of Maritime Affairs owing to the fact that the maritime industry has been neglected for so many years. Do you agree?
If we can have a Minister for Aviation, then I think we can also have a Minister for Maritime affairs. You know I am also into Aviation. To me if you compare the two, Maritime is the major source of income in Nigeria as at today. If you look at the Oil and Gas, NLNG, and even Customs, 70 or 80 percent of the revenue generated are from the maritime industry. If you look at the export of goods and services, the revenue is almost 80 percent from maritime. I think if we have a minister for Aviation, it will not be wrong to have a special attention for a Minister for Maritime affairs too. I will also create a lot of jobs and opportunities in the country, if well harnessed.
What areas do you want this administration to focus more on for the benefit of maritime stakeholders?
Well, I will advise that the Cabotage Act is well looked into and ensure that indigenous players are fully- integrated into the system. I mean purely indigenous players. Unless we want to deceive ourselves, there are some aspects of the sector that are supposed to be occupied purely by Nigerians; that is 100 percent Nigerian. That is what we can use to create job, build capacity and encourage indigenous players in the industry. There is no way we can compete financially without engaging indigenous players. It will not work. We don’t have Maritime banks. You cannot for instance go into barging and approach a commercial bank for a 19 or 15 percent interest loan. It is not going to work. We need to understand the maritime industry to import or build a barge and all. We see foreign investors coming to barging operations and you cannot tell us that a Nigerian will have an edge. You must build us, the government who licensed indigenous individuals should ensure they are encouraged with adequate capacity building. That is how I think Nigerians will survive in the industry. It is going to be a very good one. At the same time, we are looking at a situation where indigenous players can get the Cabotage Vessel Financing Fund. Having this fund will develop the industry if given to purely indigenous players. Also, the multinationals should be mandated that there should be a Nigerian workforce and with that we can get a lot of opportunities. These are the areas we really need to look into.
You are a former member of the Governing Council of CRFFN and they are in the process of recruiting a new Registrar. What do you think should be the focus of the Governing Council in appointing a Registrar for the Council?
I will advise them not to make the mistake of the past. They should give us a Registrar who understands what freight forwarding is. They should give us a Registrar who knows where the shoe is pinching. A registrar who is ready to put the profession of freight forwarding into its right position in the committee of professionals. It should be the live wire of the economy of the country. That is where everybody should be looking at.
Lekki Deep Sea Port has disclosed that it will only deal with Ocean-going barges. Do you think we have enough of such barges in Nigeria presently for operations at the Lekki deep sea port?
I think we have ocean-going barges in Nigeria. It may not be enough but like I said, we need to be encouraged. An ocean-going barge going into Lekki Free Trade zone and back to the hinterlands, I pray the expenses will not be too much for the loss we have in Lagos waters.
Do you think the Lekki Deep Sea port is driving the port enough for people to move their containers there?
It is a new port. We also know they have a lot of constraints. We need to look at the gains and what to lose. It is normal for every business man to do that. If I bring my cargo to Apapa and I have a better transport system that will help me get my consignments out of the port, so why will I go to Lekki? I want to believe that some things need to be put in place for efficient capacity.
Does that mean you are not seeing the Lekki Deep Sea port as a cash cow for barge operators?
It might be a bit difficult.
The new CEMA has been assented to by the President. How do you think freight forwarders can leverage it?
We had a bit of a battle on that CEMA when they were doing the amendment. But there are things we are allowed to do because it is a law. We keep working on until we get to perfection. The Act assented to by the President has a lot of advantages and disadvantages. There are some things that we have complained about in the old CEMA and it was amended and looked into. We would keep looking at it and see how far we can go with it. But it is a law. Until it is put to test, we cannot totally say it is a bad idea or a good one. Having said that, we are ready to work with Customs. We are not working against each other. We are always partners in progress. What the achievements of Customs are, they are also our achievements because the Customs cannot achieve it without the freight forwarders. We should just keep working together. Whatever is happening here is also happening with other sister agencies. It is just for a period of time. After sometime we would move forward.
Do you support the call that the Nigeria Customs Service to annually give a percentage of revenue generated to freight forwarders?
That has been the practice all over the world. It is not a call. It is a right. But sometimes we abuse some things in the country. It is not a call. We deserve some percentage.
Do you think CRFFN can push for this?
I want to believe they should be able to. We deserve some percent.
