The Shippers Association of Lagos State (SALS) has condemned the operations of the Nigeria Customs Strike Force, a unit of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), recently deployed to the port.
According to the association, the presence of the taskforce is gradually militarising the port in the guise of checkmating smuggling.
Speaking with BusinessDay in telephone discussion, Jonathan Nicol, President of the SALS, also condemned the modus operandi of the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON), which currently makes the environment of trade very unfriendly.
“Nigeria is not at war. Can anyone explain why our trade environment is littered with gun-carrying government agencies in a civilised society? The Nigerian Senate should save the lives and property of investors in our ports,” said Nicol.
Nicol, who said that the duties of Customs are to collect revenue, alleged that Customs and SON have been constitutionally empowered to raise an army of destruction in the name of revenue collection.
“We give so much as traders and get little or nothing from government. It was the passion of simplifying trade that prompted government to appoint an economic regulator for smooth and equitable pricing of doing business in Nigeria,” he said.
Nicol said that the cost of doing business was constantly unstable as he kicked against the recent approval of the Practitioners Operating Fees (POF), saying “this has triggered another fever in the sector.”
He noted that the collection of the POF amounted to double dues/ fees collection as all professional bodies collect annual operational fees paid by their members to their various associations.
“For instance, manufacturers pay annual dues to Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN); Medical Associations and others do same. Government was not properly informed that the freight agents were paid fully for contract of clearing jobs. We cannot fathom where this is practised anywhere other than Nigeria. Business will gradually fizzle out of our economic environment to other climes where trade tariffs are equitable,” he added.
He however decried the dilapidated port access roads at the Tin-Can Island area, the poor drainage system within and around the ports, and the lack of sewage facility, in spite of taxes being collected.
Nicol, therefore, charged the government to address all issues affecting the port business as had been raised and require attention.
“Businesses are closing down every day. Multinationals are taking over our businesses in the guise of modern trends. How can an entire “economic matter” be treated with levity?
AMAKA ANAGOR-EWUZIE
