There are clear indications that the Nigeria Customs Service and other regulatory agencies of the government have intensified anti-smuggling operations and the fight against sub-standard, fake and adulterated products imported into the country.
The founder of the National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders (NAGAFF), Dr. Boniface Aniebonam, made the disclosure in Lagos in a chat with our correspondent recently.
While commending the efforts of government agencies, Dr. Aniebonam, also draw the attention of the trading public to respect import and export regulations of the government.
“It is our considered opinion that this unwholesome breach of import guidelines has to stop because the losses are not in anyway helping the economy of Nigeria. We cannot continue to enrich other nations to the detriment of the Nigerian economy”, Aniebonam said.
He hinted that the National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders (NAGAFF) are greatly worried because the relevance of the council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarding in Nigeria (CRFFN) is not playing the expected role to justify its establishment.
According to him, CRFFN as a regulatory agency domiciled in the transport ministry is expected to control freight forwarding practice in Nigeria, adding that it is expected to set standard and code of professional practice among the practitioners.
“The trading public in the country is being deceived by quacks parading themselves as freight forwarders. It is the duty of Freight agents to guide, enlighten, educate and carry out other functions in relation to cross border trade, in line with trade policies of Nigeria. The situation on ground is that the trading public is unduly assured of thriving in illegality in our international trade,” Aniebonam said.
On the contrary, NAGAFF founder posited that “there is the apparent loss of investment by the trading public in the hands of customs and other regulatory agencies of the government.
He further explained that, it is a mandate on the part of Customs and other regulatory agencies of the government to enforce import and export regulations of the government which must not be compromised.
“Such government agencies however bask in jubilation of wining anti-smuggling war, but on the contrary, the country’s economy is nose-diving into unprecedented poverty,” he posited.
The association posited that it is important that the coordinating minister of the economy doubling as the finance minister steps forward to factor the informal sector group of the economy.
“We must get them organized very fast to realign the economy of Nigeria on the right party.”
NAGAFF, the umbrella body of freight forwarders stated that the ports and border trade require an urgent attention in favour of Nigeria cross border trade. The need for a port regulator is key and strategic to our growth and development, NAGAFF added.
“We shall therefore call the attention of the coordinating minister of the economy, the transport minster and national planning to invoke section 5 (1) (a) of the 1999 constitution of the Federal Republic to transmute Nigeria shippers council to port regulator immediately to address to unending problems in our gate ways.