The last may not have been heard about the suspended Customs duty benchmark, as the Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA), has called on the Nigerian Customs Service to revisit the issue.
National president of the association, Prince Olayiwola Shittu spoke the mind of the association on Tuesday when he led national leaders of the association to a courtesy call on the Customs Area Controller (CAC) of the Port and Terminal Multiservices Limited (PTML) at Tin Can Island port, Lagos, Comptroller T. O. Aremu.
The last may not have been heard about the suspended Customs duty benchmark, as the Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA), has called on the Nigerian Customs Service to revisit the issue.
National president of the association, Prince Olayiwola Shittu spoke the mind of the association on Tuesday when he led national leaders of the association to a courtesy call on the Customs Area Controller (CAC) of the Port and Terminal Multiservices Limited (PTML) at Tin Can Island port, Lagos, Comptroller T. O. Aremu.
He told his host that a benchmark on imported vehicles was necessary so as to stem the prevailing confusion and arbitrariness in the business of vehicle clearance at all the nation’s seaports.
Prince Shittu was on a working tour of the area command and the chapter.
The ANLCA boss explained that they had made a similar call earlier before the service introduced the suspended controversial benchmark that affected 26 items. According to him, the demand had become necessary in view of the discrepancies in duty at the various commands on same brands and age of vehicles.
He noted that the duty differentials from one area command to the other was causing confusion in the system and as such posing problems to his members, saying such did not happen in other climes.
“We made the demand for a benchmark on vehicles earlier before the suspended one was introduced. Lack of a harmonized duty on vehicles is causing serious problem among our members; that is why we are requesting for a benchmark. With a benchmark, an agent will know that if he goes to command A or B it is the same duty that will be paid for car or bus A or B. By this, he will be in a better position to advise the importer on what to pay”, Shittu said.
Prince Shittu also pleaded with the CAC to put in place measures that would eliminate delays in the release of cargo, pointing out however that the problem was not peculiar to the PTML command as, according to him, it was a general challenge among all customs formations.
Again, he pleaded with Comptroller Aremu to do everything within his powers to halt the practice whereby goods were being re-examined at the exit gate after having received a clean bill of health from releasing officers to leave the port.
The ANLCA president however acknowledged the difficulty the service could find itself when what was declared on paper was at variance with what was in the container but still pleaded with the CAC to check the problem.
He informed his host that ANLCA had become a member of the International Federation of Customs Brokers (IFCB), meaning that members were to adopt world best practices in their operations.
It was in pursuit of this, he disclosed, that the association had compiled a biometric list of its members to ensure that clearing agents complied with best practices, adding that with their biometric cards, members could make payments and do other transactions from the comfort of their offices online.
He made it clear that the association would never intercede for any agent that got himself involved in fraudulent practices in the course of duty, even as he disclosed that with the biometric registration some fake agents had been discovered who would soon face prosecution.
In his response, Comptroller Aremu commended the association’s leadership for the visit and the reform measures it had adopted to reposition the practice of its members.
The area controller disclosed that there had been a cordial relationship with ANLCA members, leading to the feat in revenue generation the command had recorded since January till date.
He however urged agents to assist the command to serve them better through honest declaration, informing that he had maintained an open door policy in order to tackle any genuine complaints from them.
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