The Patriots Anti-Corruption Initiative has sounded a warning over alleged extortion, drawn out cargo clearance and repeated hold ups at the nation’s ports, saying the practices are driving up costs and feeding inflation.
The group accused some shipping lines and terminal operators of undercutting the Federal Government’s trade facilitation and ease of doing business drive. National President Okogbue Eke told journalists at a weekend briefing that delays in issuing delivery orders, examining containers, releasing cleared cargo and completing truck call up were heaping extra charges on importers, licensed customs agents and other maritime stakeholders.
Eke alleged that some agents were being forced to make unofficial payments just to get earlier examination dates so their containers could be lined up and cleared faster. He said the group had proof, including a claim that one member paid N30,000 as a bribe on a container after already settling the proper charges, simply to obtain a closer examination date. He described the practice as a backyard settlement and said those involved were not denying it.
He called on the Nigerian Shippers’ Council, the Nigeria Customs Service and other relevant authorities to step in without delay. He also urged the Comptroller General of Customs to look into reports of manual blocking of jobs in some Customs units, which he said runs against the One Stop Shop idea.
Vice National President Okwuosa Humphrey said shipping companies occupy a central place in the maritime chain because they bring vessels and containers into the country for agents to clear. He argued they ought to support official trade facilitation so cargo moves without needless obstacles. Instead, he alleged, some lines stall the electronic sending of delivery orders to terminal operators even after agents have finished the required release steps. A process that should be almost immediate can stretch for hours, he said, leaving agents unable to take delivery the same day.
Those delays, he added, pile up demurrage that importers and agents must pay before cargo can leave. He also raised concern about alleged blockages placed on cargo by agencies and other interests sitting outside the established clearance chain. The One Stop Shop, he said, was meant to stop multiple agencies from intervening at will and to keep clearance coordinated. Even so, he claimed some interests were using shipping companies to put holds on consignments, forcing agents to visit offices before release, adding cost and pressure along the chain.
The body pressed for greater accountability from shipping companies, terminal operators and government agencies, insisting that genuine businesses should not face extra delays, unofficial payments or repeated regulatory interference after they have already completed the proper clearance process.
