Author: Saint Augustine

Individuals who have subscribed to a health plan from Avon Healthcare Ltd (Avon HMO) have been experiencing proactive and responsive customer service as complaints made to the Avon HMO 24-hour Contact Centre are resolved within five minutes and this turnaround time has exceeded the expectations of many clients. Ms. Adesimbo Ukiri, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Avon HMO, recently made this known following a recent customer satisfaction survey carried out by the organisation. These results, together with customer testimonials, showed how Avon HMO’s dedication to customer care has resonated with their members and helped develop long-lasting, positive relationships.…

The Secretary of the Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA), Tincan Island Chapter, Evang. David Kanikwu has said that the re-introduction of Cargo Tracking Note (CTN) as being proposed by the Nigerian Shippers’ Council (NSC) could only be welcomed by the maritime stakeholders if only the new CTN as packaged by NSC did not come with it any other additional cost. Speaking in a chat with Primetime Reporters in Lagos on Tuesday, Kanikwu stated that the CTN was a necessity especially in this period of insurgency and insecurity in the country as it would enable the Nigerian government to…

A Maritime Lawyer, Barr. Osuala Emmanuel Nwagbara has queried the relevance of the 1% Comprehensive Import Supervision Scheme (CISS) still being charged by the Nigeria Customs Service to facilitate clearance of cargoes in the Nigerian ports since it had outlived its usefulness. Nwagbara who raised this question during an interaction with the maritime journalists in Lagos on Tuesday also queried the need for the 7% surcharge that the Nigerian shippers pay which according to him was supposed to be for ports development since the ports had been concessioned out and was to be developed by the concessionaires as contained in…

The Acting Director General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, (NIMASA) Mr. Haruna Baba Jauro has described the partnership between the Agency and the Nigerian Navy as beneficial to the growth and development of the maritime sector and the nation at large. The Director-General who stated this during the promotion and shipping of stripes of Surgeon Lieutenant Commander Ahmed Achaka, an officer of the Nigerian Navy posted to the Maritime Guard Command (MGC), at the head quarters of the Agency, noted that the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Nigerian Navy which midwifed the MGC has helped to…

Engr. David Omonibeke, Executive Director, Marine and Operations, Nigerian Ports Authority NPA was recently honored by the Nigerian Society of Engineers with a distinguished fellowship of the body. The well-deserved conferment of the fellowship was in recognition of the notable achievements of the Engr. Omonibeke in the diverse spheres of his endeavor. Engr. David Omonibeke, a seasoned professional, an indefatigable leader, in pursuit of excellence has undertaken several training programmes within and outside the country. The Executive Director, Marine Operations has contributed immensely in various areas to the professional development of engineering and technology in Nigeria especially the NPA amongst…

Our attention has been drawn to the somewhat comic and disappointing search for relevance by Mr. Ken Emeakayi, a member of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in the state, with his Open Letter released to select journalists at a Press Briefing in Awka on August 17, 2015. In describing Mr. Emeakayi as a member of Anambra state PDP, we are of course only being charitable as it is not even clear if Emeakayi has not been expelled from the party by one or more of the numerous factions of the party currently at each other’s throats. Emeakayi and his sponsors…

…Says “You cannot fight what God has destined to be” The reinstated Managing Director of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Mallam Habib Abdullahi has officially taken over the leadership position of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) more than three months after he was previously sacked by the former President Goodluck Jonathan from  the position. At the ceremonial handover yesterday in Lagos, Abdullahi called on staff of the authority to ensure that all hands were on deck to ensure that the authority moved forward. The reinstated Managing Director maintained that destiny cannot be change by anyone even as he thanked President…

The Shippers Association of Lagos State (SALS) has identified the high cost of doing business in the Nigerian ports as one of the major problems confronting the Nigerian shipper which needed to be frontally tackled by the government. Speaking at a press briefing yesterday in Lagos, the President of SALS, Rev. Jonathan Nicol regretted that the Nigerian port was the most expensive port in the world adding that the trend was not a good one for the nation. Nicol pointed out that the government policy had to change so that the Nigerian port could compete favourably with other ports in…

…As ANLCA refrain from endorsing a candidate   Ahead of the retirement of the outgoing Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Alhaji Dikko Inde Abdullahi today, the National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders (NAGAFF) has said that it has forwarded a list of three nominees to President Muhammadu Buhari for consideration as Dikko’s successor. It will be recalled that Dikko had on the 3rd of August, 2015 notified the President of his intention to voluntarily retire from the service today so as to give room for the younger ones to take over from him and continue to improve…

It began like a rumour as the news that the outgoing Comptroller-General of Nigeria Customs Service, Alhaji Dr. Dikko Inde Abdullahi has written and notified President Muhammadu Buhari in a letter dated 3rd August, 2015 of his intention to voluntarily retire from the Service on the 18th 0f August, 2015 filtered into the Nigeria’s Maritime industry. But what came in with the initial doubt about whether or not the information was true started gathering momentum and gradually became a dominant issue in every discourse in the maritime industry. The information became more confusing when the Nigeria Customs Service could not…