Frank Aliakor (ANLCA, Apapa port)
Frank Aliakor (ANLCA, Apapa port)
We are supposed to collect it, our predecessors were doing it in the past and somebody in our association sold that idea to the Lagos State Government which made them to be collecting Wharf Landing Fees, this money is supposed to be collected by member of the association to take care of their members, this is the only way we can generate money to take care of our association, there is no association that exist without money, every association and union in Nigeria today are doing it, so why is it that freight forwarders will not collect. We need it because we normally hold programmes both local and international, and the port is the only place we can collect it because most agents think they cannot belong to associations, but when issues come up, the associations go ahead and defend them, especially when it concerns fiscal policy of the government, we intervene and government often change these policies.
Dr. Frank Ukor (National President, AREFFN)
I saw a document by the Nigerian Shippers’ Council where they stopped the collection of transaction fees, but that if the associations can come together and agree on it and collect it without bickering and squabbles, then they can go ahead and collect, because it is from these fees that they run the associations’ affairs. But a situation where one or two associations will want to collect at the exclusion of others will boil down to why the Shippers’ Council stopped the collection in the first place, if this is the case, my association is a law abiding one and we like to follow due process. In due cause, we might have to approach the Court for proper interpretation on the matter.
Comrade Vincent Onuoha (National Sec. SNFFIEC)
It is very wrong for an association to start collecting toll from people at the port, I believe it is robbery and it is very bad, they should desist from that and give room to all agents who know what clearing is all about. Some associations are just there to collect money not minding what is happening in the port, and they are not professionals, we are having problems; most especially from the Customs and the terminal operators in terms of paying unnecessary demurrage, but none of these associations thought about fighting for their members, all what they think about is the fees they collect at the port. Let them organize a workshop and give us reasons why they must collect the money. Today, if you ask any agent, they will tell you that they do not believe in any association, they prefer to be on their own.
Frank Obiekezie (Businessman)
It all bores down to the problem of control, who controls the associations? If the supervisory body knows that the associations collect this money, then there should be modalities for collecting the transaction fees, what is happening now if not properly controlled can lead to anarchy, because there is no coordination of this money or an account of how it is being spent; if the CRFFN is in control, then they should know how much is being collected at any point in time and what goes to each association’s pockets. This is the more reason why it will be difficult for the CRFFN to stand because some of these associations have decided that they don’t want anybody to checkmate them, they do not believe in the rule of law, they want the other three associations to also come into the port to collect, so that there can be crisis.
Dr. Babatunde Samuel (Registrar, POTEMAN)
When you talk about transaction fee, it is a kind of subscription in a professional body, where members subscribe for the running of the body and other activities to bring the organization to its real light. However when we look at it historically, various association like NAGAFF and ANLCA charge their members respectively on what they call transaction fee at various ports, although such action is good, but it is full of embarrassment, perhaps what the CRFFN want to do now is by making sure that there is an annual levy, the association and the council will now use the money to build up the associations. I believe one of the challenges the council will face is the ability to give appropriate portion of such amount to the freight forwarding associations, but if they can give it according to the strength of each of this association, it will go a long way to provide a lasting solution between the council and the associations.
Alhaji Ahmad Rabiu (Vice President, NACCIMA)
We should try and do everything to provide efficiency and reduce cost at our ports, the level at which associations are collecting this transaction fee will not allow cargo owners to patronize Nigerian port, so it is then important that those charges are fortified because the same operation we see in other parts of the world are what we should copy. Today we have ports in Benin Republic and they operate very large cargoes that are meant for Nigeria, this is because of the attractiveness of that port and the cost of doing business there, this is the more reason they should avoid all those charges here.
Fakanlu Olumide (Chairman, ANLCA Apapa)
My own opinion is that we should identify what purpose the money is meant for, and from whom do we collect it from. This is when we can now decide if it is normal or not. But as for the CRFFN, they are a creation of the Federal Government; carrying out government duties, and I do not think it is necessary for them to be charging us transaction fee at the port, it is the associations that can collect it from their members, but we can all agree on how best we can use it. However, the fees should not be a collection of the government.
Chidiebere Enelamah( BoT ,NAGAFF)
The issue of transaction fee collection or not, I think it should be between the CRFFN and the Shippers’ Council to come into agreement because; CRFFN was about collecting the fee before Shippers’ Council was made a commercial port regulator. However it is the agencies involved in regulation and also freight forwarder that can fashion a way out of the situation
Discussion about this post