The Nation Newspaper

Category: Maritime

  • NPA to develop Delta ports

    NPA to develop Delta ports

    The Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) is to develop the Delta port and harness its potentials to make it attractive for business, NPA Managing Director Mallam Habib Abdullahi has said the authority .

    Speaking during inspection of the construction of some infrastructure at the ports, Abdullahi said his visit was part of efforts by the NPA to rebuild the port and reposition it.

    He said NPA would carry out the dredging, channel marking, wrecks removal, acquisition of new crafts and rehabilitation of the moles at Escravos to increase business activities at the ports.

    A channel management company, Abdullahi said, would be contracted to assist in dredging and maintenance of the channel and wrecks removal.

    The Port Manager, Mr Obumneme Onuenyenwa, regretted that despite the huge potential of the ports, only about 40 per cent of the land owned by it had been developed.

    He raised the alarm that some unauthorised persons were encroaching on the land belonging to the port, urging the management to tackle the problem.

    He listed some ongoing developments in the port to include its perimeter fencing, and the rehabilitation of the quay walls by Julius Berger and China Harbor Engineering Company.

     

  • Importers, agents lament

    Importers, agents lament

    Importers and clearing agents at the land borders have been urged to stop abusing the ECOWAS Trade Liberalisation Scheme (ETLS) to boost revenue and facilitate trade at the borders.

    Speaking with The Nation at Seme border, Managing Director, World Cargo Investment, Mr Adesope Aderoju, said ETLS was put in place by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to facilitate the integration of trade and commerce among citizens of the member states.

    Aderoju said the scheme was set up to eliminate barriers and promote free trade in the sub-region.

    ETLS, he said, exempts goods manufactured in member states of ECOWAS to move freely, and without the payment of import/export duties, within the region.

    “The scheme, has been subjected to unbridled abuse, especially by some unscrupulous importers and Asian businessmen. These unscrupulous people bring in goods from China and other Asian countries, ship them into the sub-region and land such goods in ports of neighbouring countries, such as Benin Republic, Ivory Coast, Ghana and even lately Liberia. They subsequently change the labels on these goods and smuggle them through the land borders into the country.”

    A source said the implications of this act are grave. Apart from the loss of huge government revenue, goods that find their way into the market in this manner gain unfair competitive price advantage over locally made products.

     

    Apart from the abuse of the ETLS, which is mostly perpetrated through the land borders, many importers also flagrantly abuse the country’s import policy. They bring in different goods, including those that are banned by the government through the seaports.

     

  • Customs bans re-examination of cleared containers at gate

    The Controller of Customs at Tin Can Island Port Command, Comptroller Tajudeen Olanrewaju, has directed that containers released at the port should not be re-examined at the exit gate to curb extortion.

    Olanrewaju gave the directive while reacting to complaints by clearing agents of containers delay at the exit gate.

    The act, he said, implies that there was an improper examination by the officer in charge of the terminal.

    “It is a challenge to us. We have identified that and we have directed that no container should be re-examined at the gate. Exit gate are not examination points. The terminals are examination points where we have examination bay and equipments. If you examine containers at the gate, it is an indication of improper examination at the terminals,” he said.

    The customs boss, however, noted that based on intelligence gathering, illegal consignments that have been released due to oversight on the part of the officer in charge of the terminal would be reexamined, adding that such officer would be queried.

    “Once they have identified the container, it should be re- examined at the terminal and we will look for the officer that examined it and query him because it shows that officers at the examination bay are not doing their job effectively,” he said.

    Also, the command said it collected N50 billion in the first quarter of the year.

    The command’s Public Relations Officer, Mr Chris Osunkwo, said the revenue was N2 billion lower than the amount it generated in the corresponding period of last year.

    He said the decrease was caused by the slow pace of business at the port from the beginning of the year.

    Business, the image maker said, picked up towards the end of last month.

    “Naturally, at the beginning of the year, international traders are skeptical because of the uncertainties about the budget, but we collected higher revenue in March.

    “We generated N17.5 billion in March against the N16.3 billion and N16.2 generated in January and February, he told The Nation.

    Osunkwo said the command seized goods worth over N238 million in the first quarter of the year, adding that 77 containers and a vehicle were seized during the period.

    He said the containers were laden with items, such furniture, soap, vegetable oil, soft drinks, used clothes, generators and used tyres.

    Other seized items, he said, included lace materials, television stands, automotive batteries, mosquito coil and frozen fish.

  • Free high blood pressure screening

    Medplus, a pharmaceutical chain, has announced a one-week free blood pressure assessment to commemorate the World Health Day (WHD).

    The theme is High Blood Pressure (HBP).

    Its Managing Director, Mrs Joke Bakare, said the week-long initiative was coming on the heels of the 2013 edition of the WHD, which is focused on the control of blood pressure and cutting the risk of heart attack and stroke.

    This, she said, is the campaign platform for the theme declared by the World Health Organisation (WHO). “I am very pleased to announce that we would be offering free Blood Pressure Assessment Exercise to Nigerians at some of our health care stores in Lagos as a demonstration of our corporate social responsibility to the society. This initiative is closely planned in support of the World Health Organisation campaign goal for the World Health Day 2013 which is to reduce heart attack and stroke,” she said.

    Bakare said her health care company, in addition to the free blood pressure assessment, would embark on a one day radio enlightenment campaign tagged ‘Medplus Quarter Hour on blood pressure control’.

  • Lekki port threatened by funding

    Banks and other financial institutions are shying away from Lekki port in Lagos after showing initial interest.

    Investigation by The Nation showed that some banks that showed interest in the port development initially have backed down, because they believe it may not meet their expectations.

    Sources close to the promoters said some of the banks approached were not willing to give financial assistance because of the fear that they may not be able to recoup their money promptly.

    A source said out of the over four banks contacted for funding, only one has shown interest without financial commitment.

    Apart from bridging the capacity deficit, he said the port would have significant positive macro-economic impact estimated at over $360 billion over the concession period, adding that funding is the major obstackle stalling the development of the port.

    He said the port is expected to come into operation in 2016 and would contribute not less than $20 billion to the nation’s economy.

    He denied the allegation that the promoters of the port are inexperienced, saying the port would be viable for business when it commences operation. He urged the banks to invest in the project.

    About 163,000 new jobs are expected to be created in the economy if supported by the banks, the source, said.

    “Don’t forget that the Lekki port is a multi-billion dollar project, which cannot be funded by individuals. As the promoters need the assistance of the government, they also need the financial support of the banks. The port is not an ordinary port like the ones in Apapa, or any other part of the country, but a deep seaport. The port will spur the economic development around the state.

    “The amount involved is huge, the work is ongoing, but they still need indigenous support to develop the port and make it the hub in the sub-region,”the source added.

  • NIMASA chief deplores procurement law

    The Director-General, Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Patrick Akpobolokemi, has described the procurement law as outdated and inimical to the agency capacity building programme.

    He told The Nation that the bureaucracy associated with implementing the law, makes it antithetical to the agency’s programmes. Maritime administration, he said, is a security platform that requires urgent attention to meet domestic and international obligations within a limited time.

    The agency, he said, was canvassing the establishment of a maritime university, in addition to putting more resources into the maritime academy to bridge the human capacity gap in the sector, hoping that the procurement law would not stall the programme.

    He said the Act that established NIMASA stipulates that the agency must give five per cent of its statutory three per cent levy to the academy, adding that NIMASA received an approved budget of N2 billion intervention fund for Maritime Academy of Nigeria (MAN), Oron in Akwa Ibom State to boost human capacity development.

    The cash, he said, could only be released to them after passing through the bureaucracy attached to the law.

    Despite the bureaucratic nature of the law under which they are carrying out their core responsibilities, he said the agency would continue to boost training to empower people in their businesses; create employment opportunities for Nigerians in the sector and train young men and women in some maritime fields so that the human capacity gap could be closed in a few years.

    Akpobolokemi said NIMASA would send another 800 youths abroad to study Naval Architecture, Marine Engineering and Nautical Sciences so that the problem of human capacity, which led to the liquidation of the Nigeria National Shipping Line, could be resolved.

    On the procurement law, he said: “Our procurement laws, to be honest, are very obsolete. They are not in alignment with current realities. The law alone is enough to make budget performance very poor. In maritime administration for instance, the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) does not want to listen to complaints about our local law, because there are international parameters they would want to apply in judging all of us carrying out the same responsibilities across the globe.

    “Nobody cares about the local circumstances you are facing. For instance, if they expect you to pay their dues today and you did not pay because you are following one endless process, that is your own personal business; it has nothing to do with them.

    “Also, if you are supposed to police your territorial waters for peace and stability and because of procurement bureaucracy, bureaucracy of the civil service and the rest of them, you cannot meet up, it is your own personal problem, nobody takes it as an excuse. So, maritime administration is more or less a security organisation, and once we accord it that status, a lot of things can be expedited for the good of the agency and the country,” he said.

    He said one of the major problems confronting NIMASA is the delay in carrying out their core responsibility of securing the waterways and capacity building. In everything they do, he added, time is very essential.

    On oil theft, the NIMASA boss said the agency is making progress based on its collaboration with other security agencies to secure the waters. Some vessels and equipment would be deployed to secure the nation’s maritime domain soon, he said.

    Because of past mistakes, he said the agency is taking its time to disburse the Cabotage Vessel Finance Fund (CVFF) so that the money will not go into wrong hands.

    He said as part of their capacity building efforts to support indigenous operators, the first batch of beneficiaries would emerge soon.

    “We have been to the ministry and we are at the final stage for the beneficiaries to get the fund to develop them. I know that once we are able to get this first set through, the coming sets will not be problematic or challenging,” Akpobolokemi said.

  • 20 graft assessors for Warri, Calabar, Onne terminals

    The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has deployed over 20 Corruption Risk Assessors (CRA) in Lagos, Onne, Calabar, Warri ports to curb graft.

    The officers, sources said, would be at the ports till the end of June to avoid revenue loss by the government.

    The Commission, it was learnt, is working in collaboration with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to reduce corruption in the seaports.

    Speaking with The Nation after a meeting organised by ICPC  in Lagos, Alhaji Ozi Salami, who represented the ICPC Chairman, Mr Ekpo Nta, said maritime was one of the highest revenue generating sectors in the country, adding that it must be guarded to avoid losses and ensure efficient running of the port.

    The meeting was attended by the officials of the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP), Technical Unit on Governance and Anti-Corruption Reforms (TUGAR) and international partners.

    CRA, he said, is a corruption prevention tool, which works with an organisation’s management to identify areas prone to corruption, proffer recommendations, and develop integrity plans that would strengthen accountability and transparency.

    “We are not here to apportion blame, but to carry out a systems study. Since it is much better and wiser to prevent the occurrence of corruption than to expend huge resources in investigations and prosecution after the damage had been done, the Commission places much stock on the CRA process,” he said.

    Leader of the UNDP team Prof. Sam Egwu said the corruption risk assessment process being driven primarily by ICPC, TUGAR and BPP, began in 2011 with the development of a corruption risk assessment methodology.

    The methodology, he said, led to the development of a comprehensive training module that has been used to train over 60 CRAs drawn from the ministries, departments and agencies at both federal and state levels; civil society groups and the anti-corruption agencies.

    Egwu said it was from the pool of trained assessors that the 20-man team was constituted to work with experts on this pilot scheme.

     

  • NPA, US partner on maritime security

    NPA, US partner on maritime security

    The United States (US) is to partner the Nigerian Port Authority (NPA) to make the seaport safe for business.

    An official of the American Consulate-General in Lagos, Mr Rolf Olson, said the US was concerned about the country’s ability to tackle terrorism.

    Olson spoke when he and Ronald Rhinehart visited NPA Managing Director Mallam Habib Abdullahi in his office.

    Emphasising the need for the ports to be secured, Olson said the American Embassy had made its observation known to the Foreign Affairs Ministry.

    He said there was need for both countries to work together to make global maritime activities safe.

    Replying, Abdullahi said NPA had perfected programmes, which would make the authority to be alive to its responsibilities and enhance port security.

    He said the programmes were designed to improve the performance of the security division of the authority in the areas of personnel recruitment, training and acquisition of necessary working tools and equipment to safeguard the port.

    Abdullahi said he was determined to improve the outlook and the performances of the security division of the authority to enable it to cope with the increasing security challenges.

    NPA, he said, has trained officers in all the seaports, adding that the ports are improving on the requirements of International Ship & Port Facility Security Code (ISPS) code. He added that under the concession regime, the management of NPA still oversees the security of the ports in conjunction with other sister organisations.

    While commending the United States government for initiating the move to ensure safety in the global maritime activity, Mallam Abdullahi assured that NPA would support the initiative, as it was in its best interest to tackle terrorism in the ports and its environs.

  • Furniture, textile, plastics flood Lagos, other ports

    •Freight forwarders petition Minister

    The National Association of Government approved Freight Forwarders (NAGAFF) has petitioned the Minister of Finance Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala over the large number of prohibited goods uncleared at the ports.

    It urged the minister to advise the Customs to invoke Section 31 of the Customs and Excise Management Act (CEMA) to deal with the uncleared cargoes “in the interest of the economy and revenue generation.”

    According to the association, the containers of goods that fall under the prohibition list at the ports are many.

    The freight forwarders asked the Ministry of Finance and the Customs to direct the owners to take delivery of the goods after penalising them.

    An April 2 letter obtained by The Nation, the Founder of the Association, Dr Boniface Aniebonam, said prohibited imported goods such as furniture, textile and plastic materials and others items were congesting the port.

    The goods, Aniebonam said, were not dangerous, but caught under the law meant to protect local manufacturers.

    He wondered why the ministry and Customs could not capitalise on this development to enhance revenue generation.

    Government, NAGAFF said, would be shooting itself in the foot if it sells such goods as auction.

    NAGAFF pleaded for the importers, saying: “We should consider the fact that these importers borrowed from the bank to effect these imports.  It will also help in decongesting the ports and at the same time raise revenue for the government, and above all facilitate trade.

    “In view of the above, there is the urgent need for the Nigeria Customs Service to engage the trading public and the freight agents in a massive culture of trade compliant awareness campaign and education.  This will educate the trading public on why they should obey and respect the import guidelines as well as its enforcement by the government,” the group said.

  • Customs seizes 13 trailer loads of rice in Lagos

    Customs seizes 13 trailer loads of rice in Lagos

    Over 13 trailer loads of rice worth N96 million have been seized by the Customs.

    The items were hidden in wooden boats on their way from Gbaji Yeke in Badagry Lagos State to Ere in Ogun State.

    Gbaji-Ere River is a smuggling point where the smugglers use wooden boats to ferry rice, vehicles and other prohibited items into the country at night.

    The river runs through Cotonou, Owode-Apa and Ere River in Ogun State; and Badagry Lagoon up to the Atlantic Ocean.

    When The Nation visited the area, Customs officials were supervising the evacuation of the rice from the locally made boats into the trailers.

    ‘Rize Parboiled Premium, Origine Thailande, Exclusive Distribution in Benin, Prodena Saril, +22921315352’ and World Rice Thai Parboiled Rice 100 per cent sorted, Grade A Quality were inscribed with red and black paint on the white 50kg bags of rice. Its expiry date is 2014.

    Customs National Public Relations Officer Mr Wale Adeniyi said the seizure was made by the Federal Operation Unit (FOU), Zone ‘A’, Ikeja in collaboration with the Western Marine command.

    Mr Uche Ejesieme, the command’s Public Relations Officer, said Customs officers intercepted the smuggled rice at Badagry creeks.

    He attributed the success of the operation to what he called careful planning.

    The team that laid ambush for the smugglers, he said, was led by Yusuf M. A. and other officers for almost 13 days.

    Ejesieme gave kudos to the people of Gbaji, mostly the Baale of Gbaji Yeke, Chief Emmanuel Kunwakalu, for their support.

    But a member of the Gbaji community, who spoke with The Nation under the condition of anonymity, alleged that majority of those who engaged in the rice smuggling are ex-security officers and a few serving ones that have arms and ammunition.

    He said if not for the involvement of the military in the evacuation of the rice, the exercise, would have led to a battle between Customs and the smugglers.

    “The people that are involved in the business are very deadly and they have wasted so many people that have threatened their business. This river goes to Ere, in Ado-Odo Ota Local Government Area of Ogun State. That was where the boats were going before they were intercepted by the Customs.” “That axis,” I was told, “is more difficult for Customs to penetrate than this area because of its terrain.”

    He attributed the surge in rice smuggling to the high price of the commodity in the market.

    The Baale said the number of youths that have taken to smuggling has increased because of unemployment and urged the government to address the problem.

    Smuggled goods, the monarch said, include second hand vehicles, textile materials, used cloths, bags, shoes, tyres, rice, frozen chicken, frozen turkey, vegetable oil, soap, furniture, sweets,” cigarettes, apples, pineapple and palm oil.

    The President, Rice Importers and Distributors Association of Nigeria (RIMIDAN), Mr Tunned Owoeye, also told the newspaper that the country lost over N32 billion to rice smugglers last year.