BAYO AKOMOLAFE 
The move by Nigerian Navy to join government agencies in the examination of cargoes at the seaports has been opposed by stakeholders, BAYO AKOMOLAFE reports
In 2011, the Federal Government’s Economic Management Team led by the then Minister of Finance, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, pruned the number of agencies participating in cargo examination and clearing at the seaports from 14 to seven. Government took the decision following complaints, agony and illegal charges paid by stakeholders to move their consignments out of the port. Some of the agencies involved in cargo examination at the seaports then included Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON), National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS),Nigeria Police Force (NPF), Nigerian Agricultural Quarantine Service (NAQS), Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA), Port Health and the Department of State Security (DSS), among others. It was discovered that importers spent as much as 30 days and above to clear a container from the ports because of the cumbersome processes and the delays caused by multiple agencies at the ports. The panel was, therefore, compelled to reduce the agencies to seven. However, the sacked agencies began to lobby the National Assembly to be returned to the ports.
Issue
All the agencies impose one levy or the other on consignees before allowing their cargoes to exit the port, making the seaports ranked as the most expensive in West Africa as most of the officials of the agencies see the port as an avenue to make quick money. For instance, the Port Efficiency Research (PER) conducted by the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) in 2016 revealed that one of the challenges faced by port users was the activities of multiple agencies imposing various illegal charges.
New move
Notwithstanding the challenges, the Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Awwal Gambo, said in Abuja recently that the presence of Nigerian Navy at the port would curtail the proliferation of small arms. He said: “Credible intelligence has it that since we left the ports in 1996, the proliferation of small arms and light weapons into our country is scary. But again, at every importation of fertilizer-making materials or explosives for mining sites the navy had to be invited. “If NPA invites us at every opportunity to come and inspect these consignments and also ensure that they get to the destinations they are meant for and they are not diverted, then why not have us at the ports so that when the containers come in, they are not broached in the ports and subsequently after the inspection, we make sure they get to the right destination.” Gambo, who made the move during a courtesy visit to the Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, in Abuja, said that his request for naval presence at the port had not gained the necessary traction. The Chief of Naval Staff noted that he would not give up on the quest to involve his men in cargo examination.
Opposition
However, a cargo consolidator and Managing Director of Sceptre Consult, Mr Jayeola Ogamode, has said that it was abnormal to involve military men in cargo examination at the seaport. He explained that the function of Nigerian Navy had been confined to waters and, therefore, should concentrate on protecting the nation from external aggression through the waterways.
Also, a customs agent, Mr Banji Oladimeji, said that navy should face its statutory responsibility of securing the nation’s waterways instead of cargo examination at the port. He explained that to allow navy join other agencies in cargo examination and clearance would further lead to delay and unnecessary imposition of illegal charges. Oladimeji stressed that Customs had been well trained to examine cargoes, saying that they had seized some arms and ammunition without the presence of navy at the port. Before the latest decision by Nigerian Navy, Paul Usoro, who presented a paper on ‘Federal Government Policies on Ease of Doing Business in Nigeria’ during a business luncheon organised by the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) in Lagos, said that the multiplicity of government agencies at the ports not only delay cargo clearance, but had huge cost implications on businesses.
He urged the Federal Government to see to the pruning of the number of agencies at the ports to facilitate trade and cut down cost for shippers. Also, a Lagos-based importer, Emma Nwabunwannein, his view, said that NAFDAC, NDLEA and SON were not needed to be stationed in the ports to participate in all cargo examinations like Customs in order to play those roles. According to him, those roles could be played at the invitation of Customs, when the cargo under examination relates to their areas of coverage, noting that NCS had the capacity to detect offensive imports like sub-standard goods, hard drugs or prohibited items without the agency responsible being around.
Last line
Government should take a firm decision on the role of the agencies in the seaports in order to ensure efficient trade facilitation and a friendly business environment
