Evicted Agencies Resort To Blackmail, Lobby To Stay At Port

Some government agencies at the nation’s ports which were given eviction notice last week by the Federal government have resorted to unorthodox methods to whip up public sentiments against their ouster from the port.

Last week Monday, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, the Minister of Finance, leading a government team which included Senator Idris Umar, Minister of Transport, asked some of the mushroom agencies at the nation’s sea ports by to vacate the place.

At a crowded stakeholders meeting at the Lagos port, Dr Okonjo-Iweala, in company of key government officials, members of the economic team, heads of the Nigeria Customs, the Bureau of public Enterprise, the Nigerian Ports Authority, members of the presidential task force on port reforms and the special assistant to the President on Maritime, had expressed government concern over the high cost of goods clearance at the port and other encumbrances in the clearance process.

In a bid to make the port more competitive and customers-friendly, she announced the decision of the Federal Government to reduce the number of agencies at the port.

Consequently, the agencies were cut down from 14 to six. Those given the nod to remain include the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), The Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) and the Nigeria Customs Service who are statutory residents at the ports.

Others are Port Health, Nigeria Immigration Service, Port Police and the State Security Service (SSS).

Those who were shown the red card include the Standard Organisation of Nigeria(SON), National Agency for Foods, and Drug Administration Control(NAFDAC), National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), NESREA, DMI, DNI and other agencies who constitute encumbrances in the cargo clearing process.

However, some of the evicted agencies have lately resorted to actions meant to discredit the pronouncement and attract public sympathy.

They now use subtle blackmail and lobbying to whip up sentiments against their ouster from the port.

Through their proxies, agencies like SON, NAFDAC and NDLEA have embarked on media campaign to pick hole on the pronouncement.

Campaigners for SON and NAFDAC, the agencies that control the importation of regulated products, are claiming that their outer from the port will open a flood gate for massive importation of fake and sub-standard products and drugs into the country.

While lobbists for the NDLEA believed that the eviction of the agency from the port will affect the war against narcotic drugs and give a lee way to the drug czars to freely import hard drugs into the country.

They also claimed that the development will send a wrong signal to the international community, especially the United States of America.

Dr Boniface Aniebonam, the founder of the National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders (NAGAFF) expressed displeasure over the sack of these agencies at the port.

He frowned at the wild jubilation of freight forwarders over the eviction order which he believed was stretched too far.

While lauding the courage and determination displayed by government over the matter, the NAGAFF high chief urged the government to review its stance on the eviction order which he claimed has twin adverse consequences of delaying clearance procedure on regulated products that may need the attention of the evicted agencies as well as opening the ports to indiscriminate importation of harmful products.

‘Rather than outrightly evicting them from the port, government may bar the affected agencies from the examination bay. This will save time and resources that will be needed to bring them into the port on invitation from customs’ Aniebonam declared.

The sudden sympathy of the NAGAFF high chief for the affected agencies, especially the SON, looks intriguing to keen observers of maritime industry, given the fact that Aniebonam recently fought SON over their ‘excesses at the port’ before peace  was eventually brokered between the warring parties.

However, Prince Shittu Olayiwola, the National President of the Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA),rationalize the decision of government to sack the affected agencies, blaming them for creating bottlenecks in the clearing procedure.

He recalled that Customs was formally carrying out the functions of most of these agencies through specialized arms and personnel.

Dr Iweala had reiterated government determination to resist any overtures from any of the affected agencies to come back to the port. She declared that Customs has the discretion to invite them whenever their services are needed.

‘This is the time of action and implementation and not to talk. The affected agencies are given two weeks to leave the port and they shall be invited by customs whenever the need arises. Government seriousness and determination should be measured by the level of compliance ‘ the super Minister declared.

It still remains to be seen how strong, firm and resolute the present government is in enforcing the sack order as previous orders were obeyed in the breach.