The Chairman, Research and International Liaison Committee of the Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarding in Nigeria (CRFFN), Chief Increase Uche has dismissed a report which quoted him as saying the CRFFN supports one hundred percent physical examination of transit cargoes destined to Kaduna inland dry port even as he described the report as a misrepresentation of fact.
Uche who made the dismissal in a chat with newsmen in Lagos on Tuesday stated that he pointed out the said interview where he was misquoted that his committee had carried out investigations and concluded that some of those anomalies needed to be corrected adding that his committee was still working on it.
He disclosed that CRFFN had concluded arrangement with the Nigerian Shippers’ Council (NSC) to join hands in sanitizing cargo clearance procedure at the Nigerian ports.
In his words, “What I said on that fateful day is that one hundred percent physical examination on transit cargoes at the port is a misnomer but what is obtainable globally is once a vessel is offloading goods or containers at the port, that what is obtainable is pre scanning of those containers where scanners are available and that is the more reason scanners should be made available. That any attempt at conducting one hundred percent physical examination is a misnomer.
“What I have said here is that I was quoted out of context and this meeting now is to correct the misconception that the wrong reportage created. We will continue to support the establishment of ICDs in Nigeria because we know their importance to port operation. We cannot support any illegality like one hundred percent physical examination of even containers at the ports here because we need scanners to ease off the flow of cargoes. Electronic examination of cargo is the standard practice that is in operation globally. So, I wouldn’t want any reporter to tarnish the existing relationship between either CRFFN, NAGAFF as an organization or my personal self with anybody.”
Uche who is also the National President of the National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders (NAGAFF) however posited that following the outcome of his discussions with newsmen earlier in an interview on one hundred physical examination of transit cargoes, the management of the NCS had reversed itself on the matter which according to him was for the good of the industry.
“And that was what prompted the customs the following day to write a letter dissociating itself from one hundred percent physical examination of transit cargoes at the ports. There is a circular to that effect now issued on the 8th of November, 2019 from Customs Headquarters directing that performance of one hundred physical examination on containers destined for bonded terminals including ICDs should no longer be allowed, that such containers are to be allowed to get to their destination before examination is carried out on them. So, that was the outcome of that my interview. So, we keep on propagating every good practice that is meant to bring sanity in our port system”, he said.
He further refuted claims in the report where he was quoted as saying that the Kaduna inland dry port was not yet approved as port of final destination pointing out that President Muhammadu Buhari had already commissioned it as a port of destination and that cargoes had been going there.
He said, “I wouldn’t subscribe to the mischief of the reporter who wrote that very comment. The aspect of saying that it has not gotten approval is a misrepresentation. That is part of the misrepresentation of my views. Equally, that very reporter quoted me as saying that freight forwarders are impersonators. I didn’t say so. I said licensed customs agents who call themselves brokers are impersonating as there is no law establishing customs brokerage in Nigeria as at today. That those who call themselves customs brokers are brokers by labeling, that they don’t have the attributes of customs brokers because we know the qualities of persons who are supposed to be customs brokers which they don’t have because there is a laid down prerequisite qualifications that one needs to attain before you are certified as customs broker.
“Customs brokerage is a reserved one for indigenous persons. In US, Australia, Singapore and other areas, you must have attained the age of 21 and above and there are qualifying examinations that you must write. After completion of those exams, then you can be accessed and you can now apply as customs broker.”
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