ANLCA pledges support for Customs on achieving N5trn revenue target

….. urges FG to address bottlenecks against export

The Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA) has promised to support the Nigeria Customs Service in achieving its N5trillion revenue target for 2024.

This is just as the association called on the government to address bottlenecks militating against export to boost Nigeria’s foreign earnings and strengthen the naira.

Vice President of the association, Prince Segun Oduntan who spoke during a chat with journalists in Lagos on Friday said in addition to providing export grants and other incentives, there is need for the government to create a conducive port system environment for export to thrive.

Oduntan lamented that while clearing agents are already embracing exports, the delay in accessing the ports due to the poor state of the port access roads leading to long queues of trucks has remained a challenge for them.

He faulted the electronic truck call-up system deployed by the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) to ease the movement of cargo and trucks in and out of the port, describing it as a scam.

He said, We are encouraging our members now to go into export but cargoes that are loaded with exports always find it difficult to enter the ports for weeks. That is not supposed to be an ideal environment. Some of the produce gets spoiled in the course of these delays as a result of the poor access roads.

“With all that the NPA is doing l can tell you that the eto call up system is a scam. It has to go. If you go to Ghana, the access road to Tema port is not as expanded as our own here yet you will never see any container on the road. The time for export and import to go is already timed. Nobody accesses the port if you don’t have anything to do.

“The trucks are just there on the road and not carrying anything. We that process the cargo are supposed to be one to give access to trucks not NPA. All what NPA has been doing for us is trash because behind every system they introduce, we know it belongs to one person or the other. They have outlived their usefulness and abuse the eto process.

“People are improving on exports but the problem we still have is how do the exports get to their final destination? The country is losing a lot of forex on that.”

Oduntan called on the government to face the provision of an intermodal system of transportation in the country with the seriousness it deserves by establishing cargo rails to aid speedy movement of both export and import cargoes in and out of the port.

He also called on the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola to liaise with his counterpart in the ministry of works to ensure the speedy completion of the port access roads and for the port system to operate on 24hours operation.

Speaking on supporting Customs to realize its revenue target, Oduntan urged clearing agents to comply with trade rules and refrain from false declaration of goods.

He said, “The N5trillion revenue target is only a projection by Customs and there is nothing wrong in being optimistic when projecting for a new year, it will only make the officers sit tight.

“The Customs CG has been talking to his officers and we can see a renewed Customs now, people are happy doing the work and we the agents have been talking to our people that it is better to be compliant than for us to be paying one levy or fine.”