Business
ANLCA, Shippers’ Council To Partner On Maritime Sector Regulation
Freight forwarders under
the aegis of the Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA), has been urged to partner with the Nigerian Shippers Council (NSC) to address the challenges being faced by the maritime sector of the economy.
The president of the Nigerian Institute of Freight Forwarders, Dr Zeb Ikokide, gave the advice while speaking with The Tide at ANLCA’s Zonal Office, Harbour Read, Onne.
Ikokide said the instiute would partner with the various stakeholders in the maritime sector to seek ways of improving the sector in terms of revenue generation and also look into the alleged imposition of illegal charges by some shipping agents.
He urged ANLCA to report formally to the Nigerian Shippers’ Council their observations about activities in the sector rather than the association to take action that would jeopardise port operations.
The institute’s president said he has served on several committees by the NSC that used to monitor the payment of the various fees charged by shipping companies for their services usually look at the charges .
He noted that cargo owners were not liable unless it is based on charter party agreement, adding that it is only charter party agreement that makes the shipper pay the agency fee, which means the cargo owners chartered the vessel and was liable to pay the shipping company its agency fee.
Ikokide explained further that it is the person that chartered the vessel that will pay the agency fee and the shipping company has no right to be collecting agency fee from cargo owners, adding that since the cargo owners have paid. Freight charges, the shipping company would have calculated the various charges into the freight rate.
He said NSC appointment by the government as a port regulator to tackle any compliant is a welcome development.
It would be recalled NSC was approved by the federal government as a ports economic regulator in February 2014 signifying that the council as a regulator is entitled to regulate the commercial activites of all operators at the nations ports in Lagos, Port Harcourt Warri and Calabar.
Philip Okaraji