Various agencies and physical cargo examinations waste time and are reportedly responsible of the high cost of doing business in Nigeria.
Some importers, according to the regulators and operators, are questionable and this makes Customs officials to suspect any cargo they bring into the country.
The spokesperson for the Seaports Terminal Operators Association of Nigeria, Mr. Bolaji Akinola, in an interview with our correspondent said, “One of the challenges we have at the ports right now is high level of physical examination of cargo where containers are opened and cargo examined one after the other by the Customs.
“They are doing this because Nigerian importers are dishonest. They short-change the system by importing without making proper declaration and importing what they should not import.
“They are not helping government to realise its fiscal objective and because of that, the Nigeria Customs Service has become very suspicious and wants to check everything thoroughly.”
The Director, Ports Inspection Directorate, National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control, Mrs. Maureen Ebigbeyi, validated Akinola's perceptions while explaining the presence of NAFDAC at the ports during a recent maritime stakeholders’ forum.
She said that in the process of inspecting containers carrying regulated products at the ports, agents had stumbled on false declaration and forged documents by importers.
She said, “The level of false declaration that we see at the ports is amazing. At one time, 13 containers carrying wrong strength and dosage of drugs arrived in Port Harcourt under the guise of clothing materials.
“I have seen manifest from the Nigerian Ports Authority that has been doctored. Manifest from the shipping line stating something different from what is in the container.”
Also, the Director, Inspectorate and Compliance, Standards Organisation of Nigeria, Mr. Bede Obayi, said a few bills of lading bore fake names of importers and shipping agents.
He said, “Sometimes they will tell you that an importer is located at a particular address in Apapa, when you get there, it is a restaurant.
“Some of them bring in a container load of substandard electrical cables and declare them as agricultural equipment.”
Akinola also said the high cost of doing business at the ports should not be attributed to terminal operators but a combination of factors including the multiple agents and government policies on tariffs.
He said, “Terminal operators are not responsible for the high cost of doing business at the ports. Within the entire chain, terminal operators are responsible for less than five per cent of the costs and their charges are very competitive.
“The cost of doing business in our ports is high because of tariffs on imported goods, which are imposed by the government. For instance, before now, the duty on vehicle was just 20 per cent but the last administration raised it to 70 per cent.”
He added, “Also, truckers, clearing agents, government agencies that operate within the system have their charges. There are ship dues payable to the Nigerian Ports Authority, bills payable to Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency; there are port development surcharges payable to the government.”
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