‘You have no authority to detain cargo released by Customs at ports’- Shippers’ Council tackles Police

The Nigerian Shippers’ Council (NSC) has chided police officers over undue interference and detention of cargo already cleared by the Nigeria Customs Service at the ports.

Executive Secretary of the Council, Emmanuel Jime who expressed displeasure over the incessant interference by officers of the maritime police command in cargo clearance maintained that the police do not have authority to detain a cargo after it has been duly examined and cleared by Customs.

Jime, who spoke during a Multi-Agency Stakeholders Enlightenment programme organised by the NSC in collaboration with the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC), noted that the interference by police is impeding smooth clearance of not only imports but export of agro commodities.

“The problem we have now is that we have Customs on one side and police on the other side and both of them are checking cargoes. These are impediments that should not exist. If Customs clears cargo, the Police do not have the right or authority to detain the cargo.

“If the police have intelligence on a cargo, they should follow the container to its warehouse and check the container there and not congest our port or ports’ access roads.

“We see these problems every day. Every agency of government has their roles cut out for them. NPA, NSC, NAFDAC, and others, we all have our different roles cut out for us, let us look at how we can interface with each other and harmonise our operations to help facilitate trade whether import or export.

“If NAFDAC flags a container that has already been cleared by SON, it shouldn’t lead to clogging of the port’s access roads or port congestion. We need to harmonise our operations for the benefit of the country, Jime,who was represented by Director, Regulatory Services, NSC, Ifeoma Ezedinma said.

Jime said the meeting was organized to identify bottlenecks that impede the smooth export of commodities and identify innovative solutions to address the challenges.

Noting that the country’s economy is hinged on export, Jime said there is need for the government to create deliberate policies that will aggressively drive export and enable trade both locally and internationally.

According to him, “In 2021, statistics showed that just one percent increase in Nigeria’s agricultural products boosted our economic growth by 25 percent.

“That means Nigeria has the potential to do much more, and we know this. However, there are two issues; impediment to access to markets, and impediments to access to finance for export.

“If we can identify the problems that prevent Nigerian farmers from having access to markets for their goods or access to finance that will enable them trade their goods in the international market, then we would have been able to move a step forward.

“We keep talking about these issues. We know them. It’s not just the shipping line charges or terminal handling charges or port charges, the issues start from the farm right till when the goods get to the ports.,” he said.

Also speaking, PEBEC Project Manager, Ayokunnu Ojeniyi, who highlighted efforts made by the Council to promote ease of doing business in the country said the Federal Government has now made it mandatory for Ministeries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) to publish their processes and vital information on their websites with timeliness.

He said “MDA’s are now mandated as a requirement to publish processes of licenses, permits, waivers, approvals and other vital information on their websites, this should also carry timelines.”

Ojeniyi added that the Federal Government is creating a single customer interface at the ports and airports in order to ensure efficiency and eliminate corruption.

“This means that there has to be a joint inspection, led by the Nigeria Customs Service. Different agencies would not be inspecting cargoes differently at the ports, ” he said.

In her opening remarks, Assistant Director, Trade Services, NSC, Adaora Nwonu noted that if Nigeria is desirous of changing its narrative and address the current forex crisis, it must rely on more exports to revamp and boost the economy.

She said the essence of the programme is to remove every bottleneck affecting export cargo.

Speaking, she said, “The event is to help identify challenges impeding export and find solutions to them.

“We cannot be competitive if the challenges are so numerous and would not allow us to export in a timely and efficient manner. How else do we end the challenge of forex if not by boosting our productive capacity in export, removing every hindrance starting from documentation, payment charges and other processes. There is no better time than now to do this.”