The Chairman of Association of Nigeria Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA) at Kirikiri Lighter Terminal (KLT) Comrade Goddy Sewa Soleji has admonished the Nigerian Police to desist from the act of intercepting containers.
Soleji lamented that the unfortunate trend had become popular in Lagos even as he stressed that Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) primarily functions as the revenue collector while the Police functions as the security agent in-charge of safety of lives and properties.
“Police should go back to the functions outlined in their Act. The Police Act doesn’t in anyway authorize the Police to intercept containers either at the point of release or an already released container. This duty is solely for Customs” he told MMS Plus newspaper.
Similarly, the Customs National Public Relations Officer (PRO), Joseph Attah maintained that it was the statutory function of the Customs to examine and clear containers and also intercept when there is any suspected infraction.
However, he opined that it may not be out of place for the Police upon credible intelligence stop containers for investigation in order to curb crime.
He emphasized the existing spirit of inter-agency collaboration where the customs as well as any patriotic Nigerians upon credible information can assist in the fight against crime.
Earlier, Soleji who was speaking to our correspondence during an exclusive chat lamented that the challenges facing custom brokerage in Nigeria was increasing at an alarming rate.
“The challenges customs brokers face in this country are too numerous and it continues to increase by the day. The problem includes the incessant increase in trucking fares, foreign exchange, port access roads, demurrage caused by truckers and terminal operators most times, then you also have the problem of holding bays” he said.
Soleji beckoned on the Federal Government to quickly intervene, noting that the frivolous charges and bottlenecks in port business would trickle down to the final consumer because the importers must pass the cost burden to the final price of their goods or services.
The veteran Customs broker urged shipping companies to have functional empty container holding bays.
“The traffic situation on the Lagos port access roads has degenerated to such pitiable state because of the absence of holding bays. Most of the holding bays of the shipping companies can’t take up to 1000 containers yet the companies know that their mostly inflow of containers is more than 1000. Most of the containers here in KLT were cleared from other ports and the empty containers were directed to this holding bay but the facility can’t take the containers” he added.
By Kenneth Jukpor
