The Nigerian Customs
Service (NCS) Area One Command, Port Harcourt, has lamented over the rate of dull business activities at Port Harcourt Port.
This they have attributed to the high tariff placed by the federal government on the importation of rice, which has also been aggraviated by the inceasant rain fall in Port Harcourt in recent time.
Responding to the matter in a chat with The Tide in Port Harcourt, the public relations officer of the area one command, Mr. Samuel Harry, said that the high duty placed on rice by the government has affected their revenue profile in the command.
He said that rice, among other bulk cargo liked fish, cement and petroleum product among others are the major source of revenue in the operation of the command, adding that revenue target for the year will be difficult to attain in this kind scenario.
For other products like fish and cement the command spokes person said that the cargo throughput on them is low, and that revenue generated from fish has drastically reduced recently.
According to him, the on set of the rainy season has immensely contributed to the reduction in level of business, as the discharge of fish and cement can not be done under rain.
As for petroleum products that are discharged from the port, Harry said that such products don’t yield revenue as such to government, as they are almost duty free.
However, the command’s image maker expressed hope that the situation may be better when the rainy period is over, but quickly added that the high duty on rice which is still in force will still impact negatively on the revenue generation of the command.

Corlins Walter