The Presidential 100% Compliance Team of the National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders (NAGAFF) is set to battle it out with the Standards Organization of Nigeria (SON) and the National Agency for Food, Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) over excessive collection of import goods as samples for laboratory testing.
The National Coordinator of the team, Alhaji Ibrahim Tanko who gave this hint in an interview with our correspondent in Lagos on Thursday frowned at the excessive samples collection by the officials of the two government agencies which he said that they never returned after testing leading to huge losses on the part of the importers and their agents.
Tanko hinted that the team was going to commence the compliance message with the SON and NAFDAC adding that they had petitioned the Office of the Vice President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and copied the Directors General of NAFDAC and SON, the Commissioner of Police Ports, APM Terminal as well as the two Ministers namely; the Minister of Finance and the Minister of Transportation on the matter.
He stated, “This year, we want to start from the SON and the NAFDAC on the issue of excess sampling that they are collecting in the port. We lose huge amount of money last year and we don’t want to continue with the trend this year. The last time we know, the former Minister of Finance, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala sent them out of the ports, telling them to be operating from their offices. We spent almost five to six years working like that and nothing happened. We don’t know how they started finding their way back to the port.
“Initially, the order said that they are to come in only on request by the customs but we now understand that they no longer come on request rather they come there on their own, they examine every container and carry samples. What baffles me most is that they don’t have limit to the number of samples that they collect. They collect as many samples as they can and they don’t return them.”
The National Coordinator further disclosed that “After we finish with the SON and NAFDAC, we are proceeding to the shipping companies and terminal operators and when we are through with them, we are proceeding to other agencies like NDLEA, Plant Quarantine, DSS and so on.”
He noted that having embarked on campaigns to sensitize the port operators last year on the need for everyone to comply with extant rules, the team will start biting this year.
Asked what he meant by “biting”, Alhaji Tanko who is also the Vice President, Western Zone, NAGAFF explained, “What I mean by biting is that we want to start letting people know the need for all of us to comply with the rule of law. This issue of compliance, I always say it; we are not the one calling for compliance but the government agencies especially the customs. They used to tell us that we are not complying with trade rules and that is why they are creating different kinds of units; Strike Force, FOU, Customs Police and so on. So, we decided to start campaigning and letting people to understand why we need to do the right thing so as to help the Nigerian government.
“When I say that we are going to bite this year, I didn’t mean that we are going to carry guns and machetes or invading people’s offices with crowd. That is archaic and outdated. Just as I earlier told you that we have written petition to government now against SON and NAFDAC, we are yet to receive the reply. We have written to all these people asking that they should give us circular that warrant their return to the port and be taking samples without limit. And since they couldn’t give us a reply, we said on the second week of next month, we will not allow them to be in the port.
“We have written to the Police Commissioner, when they (SON and NAFDAC) give us the circular, they go in and carry on with their business otherwise, their business is illegal. The Police are aware and the APM terminal who is the custodian of the cargoes is aware. So, when we say, this is what we want, you give us the circular that authorized you to come and take those samples.
“The second way of biting is, we have synergy with the security agencies like the Police, EFCC, DSS and so on. That is why our slogan says “see something and say something”. I don’t need to fight you; the people that will take you are there. They will write officially to you inviting you to come and explain. So, it is not me that will invite you. My own is to tell you the truth, if I see something, I say something. It is not like breaking bottles and fighting everyone, not at all.”
Photo: The National Coordinator, NAGAFF 100% Compliance Team, Alhaji Ibrahim Tanko.
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