Ports: Corruption is Fighting Us Back, Says NAGAFF Compliance Team Leader
*Wants Customs, NAFDAC, SON, Police to end tradition of corruption at ports
The National Association of Government Approval Freight Forwarders (NAGAFF) has said that those working against its 100 percent Compliance Team in the ports were some corrupt elements among the service providers, government agencies and freight forwarders.
NAGAFF had set up a Compliance Team in the ports to monitor compliance level of service providers on Ease of Doing Business campaign at the ports.
Head of the NAGAFF 100 percent Compliance Team, Alhaji Ibrahim Tanko, accused some elements in NAFDAC, SON , terminal operators and bonded terminal operators of resisting the efforts to check their compliance level on rules of engagement.
Tanko said these elements were the ones carrying out a campaign of calumny against the team.
He also accused some elements in the freight forwarding industry of being irredeemably corrupt and working on circumventing the rules in the ports.
According to him, some agents were doing everything to frustrate the efforts of the team.
But he vowed that no amount of intimidation and blackmail can stop the team from performing its task, adding that members remained determined and focused in ensuring that all stakeholders play by the rules.
He told newsmen, “The government agencies have asked us to be compliant and play by the rules. That is what we are trying to achieve among our members.
“We have about 40 percent compliance level among our members and hope to get about 50 to 60 per cent by the end of the year.
It is a gradual process”
“We are even organising a three-day seminar for members where we intend to further preach the gospel of compliance to them.
“After that, we shall focus on government agencies with whom we hope to interract on the issue of compliance for mutual understanding and cooperation.
“We have already written to the relevant ones to this effect”
“We have even engaged our principals who are the importers to made correct declarations.
“So if we decided to be compliant, the service providers should also be compliant by having the necessary capacity to do the job, by not overcharging us and by getting the necessary equipment.
“The officials of regulatory agencies like Customs, NAFDAC, SON and even Police should all play the game by its rules and stop their extortions”.
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