The Nigerian Shippers’ Council has called on the Federal government to embark on the review of the subsisting port concession agreement it entered into with the private terminal operators in the concession period of 2006.
The Executive Secretary and Chief Executive Officer, Nigerian Shippers’ Council, Barr. Hassan Bello who made this call at an interactive session with senior media practitioners in Lagos recently said that the port concession agreement signed between the two parties in 2006 was long overdue for review.
Bello regretted that the port concession agreement, which should have been reviewed every two years to accommodate the emerging trends in the industry, has remained untouched since it was signed in 2006.
He stated that the Council was working with all stakeholders to review the agreement to ensure that all parties play their roles as spelt out in the contract.
The Executive Secretary also disclosed that the Council was putting finishing touches in its plan to introduce the minimum share capital for companies and individuals engaged in the freight forwarding business.
While bemoaning the lacking of professionalism and absence of sanity n the freight forwarding industry, Bello opined that a minimum share capital to be put in place by the council would engender consolidation and check the activities of touts.
According to him,” there must be minimum standards. What we have at present is that someone will come to Lagos by night bus from Birnin Kebbi, arrives the following morning and he becomes a freight forwarder. This cannot be allowed to continue”.
He pointed out that effective clearance at the port was hampered by human elements that daily besiege the ports.
“It is only in Nigeria that you see the number of people you see in our ports. It is only in our ports that you see campaign posters inside the yards. Our clearing system is near primitive hence the high cost of doing business at the port”.
“We must sanitize the port. Unfortunately, we are coming at a time the game has started. As commercial regulator, we are now the referee of the game and our aim is to sanitize the industry”.
“We will be democratic fulfilling this mandate but there are times when we have to apply force to fulfill this mandate”, he said.
Since the assumption of the commercial regulator role in the industry last February, the council has met with various stakeholders and interest groups to seek ways of executing its mandate with their support while assuring the port operators and users that it would maintain fairness in carrying out its functions.
He said that the Council would find it difficult to fulfill its new assignment without the cooperation of stakeholders.
