Shippers Council Rallies Maritime Stakeholders to Support FG on Closure of Land Borders
Bello: It is time neighbouring countries respect ECOWAS protocol
* Whoever does not support govt on closure is unpatriotic, says Aneibonam
*As customs agents lament huge losses by importers over trapped goods
By Francis Ugwoke
The Nigerian Shippers Council (NSC) weekend called a meeting of maritime industry stakeholders to rally support for the federal government over the closure of the land borders.
The stakeholders including importers, exporters, freight forwarders, customs brokers, officials of the Nigeria Customs Officers and other government agencies, among others, appraised the situation at the borders over the years and said the action of the government was in order.
Executive Secretary of the NSC, Mr Hassan Bello, in his opening remark during the meeting said his Council was in full support of the closure of the borders because according to him, it was targeted at ensuring that the right thing is done.
Describing the Council as a trade facilitator like the Customs, Bello however said there are things one can allow to happen but not those that breach rules and regulations.
He said the closure was based on the federal government’s obligation in ensuring that the right thing is done, adding that no country can just open its borders and say come and do everything even outside the law.
Bello pointed out that Nigeria has remained a law abiding country as far as ECOWAS protocol is concerned, regretting however that this was not the same for the neighbouring countries.
According to him, there is the need for the ECOWAS protocol to be reviewed as Nigeria was now a victim and not a beneficiary.
He said, “Remember that the federal government just signed the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (ACFTA). We have had every economist pushing the ECOWAS protocol. We have to review this protocol because Nigeria seems to be a victim rather than beneficiary. There are certain things we allow to happen and those we should not.”
He urged the stakeholders to support the federal government action on the closure of the borders.
‘It is our duty to support what customs is doing and it is also our duty to proffer solution. NSC is a trade facilitator just like Customs. So we have been involved in the management of the corridor, the Lagos Abidjan corridor. We have presence at the Seme border so we know all the issues going on, we know how we have been taken advantage on and we are in support of what is going on now. For long, Nigeria has been taking things lightly, we are often called a big brother and at the same time we are turned to a dustbin where everything is dumped”.
He said the moves by the federal government has a lot of benefits for Nigeria’s economy with increased activities at the ports as many importers now use Nigerian ports, a development he stated will translate to more revenue from imports.
According to him, it was time for Nigeria to start looking inward and even move to the level of exporting like other countries.
Besides, he said, the action of the government was to save its economy and create jobs for the populace.
Stakeholders who attended the meeting were all in favour of the federal government action.
However, some freight forwarders said the notice ought to have been given to the stakeholders before the closure, to evacuate items that are currently trapped in the borders.
Deputy President of the Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA), Mr Kayode Farinto who welcomed the closure was of the view that the measure ought to have been taken before now.
Farinto opined the closure will increase activities at the ports, create jobs and reduce smuggling at the border areas.
He however called on the federal government to address infrastructure issues at the ports, adding that truck owners now collect N500,000 to deliver one container from Apapa to Ikeja.
According to him, government should pay urgent attention on repair of the roads as well as interconnectivity of the ports with rails.
Farinto also called on the government to take an inventory of jobs created during the period of the border closure as compared with what it used to be before.
He said this will make people appreciate the closure of the border by the federal government.
He further urged the federal government to review the current tariff on imported vehicles which is about 70 percent for new ones.
A renowned practitioner, Otunba Kunle Folarin while applauding the federal government for the closure of the ports queried why other countries have been crying out when they failed to do the right thing.
Folarin said it was Nigeria that was at cross-roads over the closure with trade crime and loss of revenue from the border due to smuggling.
He condemned freight forwarders for complaining over the gridlock at Apapa following the border closure, saying that the measure has also shown that Nigeria is in-charge of the West African markets.
Founder of the National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarding (NAGAFF), Dr. Boniface Aniebonam who also welcomed the closure said the problem has been communication.
Aniebonam who commended the NSC for convening the meeting to brief stakeholders on the closure said Nigerians ought to know the truth about the closure.
Calling on other agencies of government to join the NSC in explaining to stakeholders on the benefits of the closure , Aniebonam bluntly said that whoever does not support the government was unpatriotic.
He pointed out that Section 19-b of the Customs Act gives the Service the power to shut the borders, blaming the neighbouring countries for breaching ECOWAS protocol that led to the latest development.
The NAGAFF founder who observed that the closure of the border was a kind of indictment on those manning the borders said it was time for them to wake up to their responsibilities.
“If you have bad neighbor, you cannot be sleeping. We should not reopen our borders until we get our neighbours to right the wrongs. We need to support government but government also needs to do what it ought to do”, Aniebonam said.
Managing Director of the Inland Container Nigeria Limited (ICNL), Mr Issa Yusuf, while supporting government action said it was time government ensures that its neighbours are complying with trade agreements.
Yusuf called on the federal government to be fair to Nigerians on the closure, pointing out that so many people were suffering as a result of the measure.
He was of the view that government should have given Nigerians notice before the closure so that nobody would be taken unawares because of the trapped goods at the borders.
He called on security agencies to work hard , adding that the closure shows they have not done well in checking influx of goods not covered by law.
Other stakeholders complained about the fate of importers who have genuine goods trapped at the borders, stating that some importers had borrowed money from banks to import those goods.
They appealed for government intervention to allow some of the goods to be cleared to save the importers the losses.
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