The Nation Newspaper

Tag: CRFFN

  • ANLCA backs CRFFN’s fee collection at ports

    THE Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA) has lent its support to the Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarding in Nigeria (CRFFN) to collect practising fees from freight forwarders at the airports, seaports and land borders.

    Its National President, Alhaji Olayiwola Shittu, said it is in the best interest of ANLCA to support the collection approved by the Minister of Transport, Senator Idris Umar.

    The government approved following transaction fees for airports, seaports and land borders cargoes: N1.50 per kilo for air cargoes; N1,000 per 20ft container; N2,000 per 40ft container; N500 per car/Jeep; N1,000 per truck or 20ft equivalent; N2,000 per truck or 40ft equivalent; N3.50 per ton for general cargo and N1 per ton for dry bulk cargo.

    The government also okayed registration fees for Nigerians and non-Nigerians, ranging from N7,500 to N50,000, depending on the category of membership.

    Similarly, yearly subscription fees ranging from N10,000 to N60,000 were approved.

    And to ensure compliance, the ministry directed the Central Office Planning and Information (COPI) of the NPA to “henceforth forward copies of all cargo manifests received to the CRFFN.”

    “In addition, the CRFFN should be represented at the Berthing Committee Meetings of the NPA.”

    Shittu said that the Minister had during a recent meeting with CRFFN officials and leaders of the leading freight forwarding associations, approved the funding of the associations from the transaction fees.

    He said: “You can only carry out transactions in the ports when you are licensed. Customs license us, shipping companies license us, terminal operators, NPA license us. Any corporate body purportedly in the freight forwarding industry that does not have either one or two of these licenses cannot be deemed to be an operator. So based on this, we work, gather money and give to CRFFN to share for those who have nothing at stake. It is the existence of our companies that will generate that money that is going out.”

    He, however, said the method of distributing the funds among associations registered by the CRFFN should be based on the level of payment made by their members.

    He said: “It is a welcome decision of the minister that associations must be funded from the transaction fees collection. The distributive method of the funding should be based pro rata on the level of payment by operators through the associations they belong. In other to protect the interest of ANLCA, the pro rata funding should form the foundation of our collaboration with CRFFN.”

  • Customs, NAFDAC, SON involved in ports corruption, says maritime chief

    All stakeholders, including importers, agents, Customs and other government agencies, such as National Agency for Food, Drugs Administration and Control (NAFDAC), Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) and Nigeria Immigration Services (NIS) are involved in corruption at the ports, according to Managing Director, Shibab Services, a freight forwarding firm, Mr Babatunde Shittu.

    When it comes to corruption, he said, agents were at the receiving end as they are seen to be driving graft at the ports.

    He said: “They (stakeholders) are all partners in business because the agents cannot do it alone. The importers cannot do it alone. Also, the agents cannot do it alone because they have to support or consult the Customs who have the power of final release of the consignment from the ports. Looking well at it, it is a joint effort of every one of them; they are in business together.”

    He noted that agents cannot be said to be dubious because the agent is working for someone. He said: “Agents alone cannot be said to be dubious because the agent is working for someone. Most of the importers are more dubious than the agents because the agents dance to the tune of the importer.

    “Some importers bring in consignments, devalue the invoice and want the agent to work with that invoice. The importer already wants to cheat the government in duty and at the end of the da, the agent is only a tool in the hands of the importer. Nobody will see the importer, they only see the middleman that is running around, that is the agent.

    “For instance, an importer gives an agent a job worth N100,000, but says he can only pay N50,000 knowing well that N50,000 cannot cover the job, but some agents jump at it and collect the money, but after sometime, they will come back for more money. “The importer would be forced to give the agent the money because you do not want your cargo to remain there.”

    Shittu pointed out that some importers who have done the valuation already and only want to use the agents to bribe the Customs and to bribe their way to get their consignments out of the ports adding that the agents and importers should be blamed in this case.

    He called on the relevant government agencies to collaborate with all the sectors in the industry to make ongoing port reforms successful. He also charged leaders of the various associations and agenciess to work with the Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarding in Nigeria (CRFFN) to change the fortune of agents.

  • FIATA okays CRFFN for HND award

    The International Federation of Freight Forwarders Associations (FIATA) has okayed the Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarding in Nigeria (CRFFN) to award Higher Diploma in Supply Chain Management.

    The CRFFN’s Head, Corporate Affairs, Uromta Chinyere, said the accreditation was done in Singapore.

    In a statement, Uromata said: “Nigeria has recorded another milestone in the history of the freight forwarding industry in the country as the world body of freight forwarders, the International Federation of Freight Forwarders Associations (FIATA), handed over accreditation certificate to Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarding in Nigeria for the Higher Diploma in Supply Chain Management at a session of the Advisory Board on Vocational Training in Singapore.

    The CRFFN Registrar, Sir Mike Jukwe: “It would be recalled that earlier in the week, the CRFFN Registrar, Sir Mike Jukwe, had successfully defended Nigeria/CRFFN’s submission to FIATA for the accreditation of the Higher Diploma in supply chain Management in the ongoing FIATA World Congress in Singapore.

    “Nigeria has, therefore, become one of the three African countries to record this milestone. Other countries that scaled through the defence were Egypt and South Africa.

    “In the same vein, the Professional Diploma in Freight Forwarding and Supply chain Management had also been accredited by FIATA in October 2012, in a FIATA World Congress in Los Angeles, United States after its successful defence by Jukwe.”

    Uromta also said the National Board for Technical Education (NBTE) has given approval to the Council for the CRFFN to conduct FIATA Diploma programmes.

    These achievements have brought a new dawn to the sector as one of the core mandates of CRFFN, of ensuring professionalism through education and training of the people of the industry is being actualised, he added.

  • Agents raise alarm over quacks in clearing business

    The National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders (NAGAFF) has raised the alarm over quacks parading themselves as freight forwarders at the ports.

    It urged the Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarding in Nigeria (CRFFN) to sanitise the sector by eliminating the quacks.

    NAGAFF’s Founder Dr Boniface Aniebonam alleged that the quacks were deceiving the public, urging CRFFN to confront them.

    NAGAFF, Aniebonam said, became worried because CRFFN is not playing its role.

    He noted that CRFFN was established to control freight forwarding practice in the country and wondered why the group is not carrying out its responsibilities.

    He said CRFFN is expected to set standards and code of professional practice among practitioners.

    Aniebonam also urged the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) to enforce import and export regulations of government.

    “If such regulations were not enforced, the country’s economy will continue to nosedive into unprecedented poverty,” he added.

    “We also suggest and advise the Customs service and other regulatory agencies of government to adopt the concept of corrective measures, instead of outright seizure of defaulting goods.’’

    He said the nation’s ports and border posts require commercial regulator.

    “The need for a port regulator is key and strategic to our growth and development,” Aniebonam said.

  • NAGAFF faults moves to resolve CRFFN crisis

    The founder, National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders (NAGAFF), Dr Boniface Aniebonam, has spoken on why the Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarding in Nigeria (CRFFN) is in crisis.

    He also faulted the move to revive the CRFFN.

    Aniebonam said the problem with CRFFN was human, adding that sabotage and lack of knowledge by some members of its governing council led to its present predicament.

    He urged the council to create an atmosphere where all stakehold-ers would come together to discuss the future of the body.

    “The problem with CRFFN has to do with human element, sabotage, lack of knowledge, which speaks volumes of the what was their mindset? Those who cut out this concept what do they have in mind?

    “I don’t know the advice they want to give as to the issue of the transport ministry and the council itself, it is most unfortunate but I think that if you look at the midterm report by the minister of transport, you will find out that CRFFN was not mentioned as a parastatal of the transport ministry. This goes a long way to prove that CRFFN is not a parastatal of transport ministry, but under the supervision of the ministry,” he said.

    Aniebonam said efforts to revive CRFFN could only be achieved when the key stakeholders are involved.

  • ANLCA, CRFFN end feud

    The feud between the Association of Nigeria LicensedCustoms Agents (ANLCA) and the Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarding in Nigeria (CRFFN) has been resolved, The Nation has gathered.

    The problem started when ANLCA National President Prince Olayiwola Shittu resigned from the council, following the approval granted CRFFN by the Federal Government to collect transaction fees at seaports, airports, and land borders.

    The crisis generated by the approval forced the Minister of Transport, Senator Idris Umar, to rescind his decision and directed the council to stop the collection of the fees from port operators.

    The charges approved by government then, include, N1.50 per kilometre for air cargo, N1,000 per 20 ft container, N2,000 per 40 ft container, N500 per car/jeep, N1,000 per truck or 20ft equivalent, N2,000 per truck or 40ft equivalent, N3.50 per tonnes for general cargo and N1.00 per tonnes for dry bulk cargo.

    But the ANLCA chief told said on Friday that the group has decided to give peace a chance based on the intervention of the Acting Executive Secretary, Nigerian Shippers Council, Mr Hassan Bello and meetings they held with the Registrar of CRFFN; Sir Mike Jukwe, to resolve the crisis.

    Some grounds, he said, have been shifted by the ‘feuding parties’ to end the crisis.

    “We have been meeting with the Registrar of CRFFN and I have no doubt that we shall resolve all the areas of conflict,” he said.

    He said the highest hierarchy of ANLCA has endorsed the terms of agreement and assured that the crisis with the CRFFN will ended to promote port business.

  • CRFFN crisis irks shippers

    The Nigerian Shippers Council has intervened in the face-off between the Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarding in Nigeria (CRFFN) and leaders of some freight forwarding associations.

    Its Acting Executive Secretary, Mr Hassan Bello, said he would be happy if the disagreements among freight forwarding practitioners over CRFFN transaction fee collection is resolved.

    Bello made the appeal when the President, Association of Nigeria Licensed Customs Agent (ANLCA), Prince Olayiwola Shittu and members of the association visited him in his office.

    He urged ANCLA to display leadership qualities and ensure that it rally other freight forwarders to resolve the crisis.

    The Shippers Council boss said: “I challenge ANLCA to show its leadership role in the council so that the reasons it was set up for training and retraining, for positioning of our freight forwarding practice and aligning it with global best practices is realised.

    “I think you have a role to play in that organisation so we call on you to work hand in hand with the council and other freight forwarding organisations so that the dream of the Nigerian Shipper’s Council is realised.

    “I am aware that the reason the Act was set up was for us to align our practice with international best practices, paperless transactions, training and retraining freight forwarders, we don’t want this profession to be invaded by quacks, we need a people who can stand to negotiate with international service providers and for that we have seen the growth of ANLCA, we are very proud of you.”

    Responding, the ANLCA chief expressed optimisms that the matter would be resolved soon and that a roundtable meeting would soon be called to resolve issues.

    He explained that the association is discussing with other sister freight forwarding associations and trying to resolve the crisis.

    Shittu also expressed the hope that the matter would soon be resolved and that a roundtable meeting would soon be called to resolve issues.

    Bello, however, lamented the recurring arbitrary charges in the industry by shipping companies and terminal operators. He called on the Federal Government to address the situation.

     

  • CRFFN cracks down on quacks

    The Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarding in Nigeria (CRFFN) has said it will crack down on quacks at the ports.

    Its Registrar, Sir Mike Jukwe, said collection of Identity Cards, which lapsed on December 31, this year, could be get at their offices in Apapa–Lagos, Abuja, Kano and Port Harcourt for their members.

    “The CRFFN enforcement team along with law enforcement agencies will from next month carry out raids of quacks and those without the identity cards from the nation’s cargo ports for prosecution,” he said.

    He also said the maiden Register of Freight Forwarders comprised those registered with the Council by the end of last year would soon be published in the Official Gazette.

    Jukwe urged members of the Council to renew their practising licences before the end of the first quarter of the year.

    “Please take note that renewal of practising licence will be subject to participation in the Mandatory Continuing Professional Development (MPCD) programme to be held quarterly by the Nigerian Institute of Freight Forwarding (NIFF), which details will be released in due course,” he said.

     

  • Fed Govt dissolves Council of Freight Forwarders

    Fed Govt dissolves Council of Freight Forwarders

    The Federal Government has dissolved the Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarding in Nigeria (CRFFN). The dissolution followed the crisis that rocked the organisation after the government directed it to collect transaction fees at the ports.

    The Nation learnt that in a letter the Minister of Transport, Senator Idris Umar, has notified Chairman of the Council, Hakeem Olanrewaju of the dissolution.

    In the letter, the Council members were directed to quit their positions.

    Sources at the Ministry of Transport said the Council was dissolved because of a petition written to the Minister by the management of the Nigeria Customs Services (NCS). The September 5 letter signed by the Assistant Comptroller–General of Customs, Mr Musa Tahir, for the Controller-General, said the approval granted to CRFFN to collect fees would increase the cost of business at the ports and cause delays in the clearance of goods.

    Also, the Minister, sources said, dissolved the council because of another petition by the Association of Nigeria Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA), claiming that the tenure of officers of the council had expired.

    In his letter to Olanrewaju the Minister noted that the elected council members have a four-year tenure which expired on August, 14. He said any decision by the council after this date was illegal.

    While dissolving the council, sources said the minister accused its leadership of extending their tenure by one year, in contravention of the council’s Act.

    A member of the board, who craved anonymity, told The Nation that though members of other associations had accepted to cooperate with the council, the Customs and ANLCA did not.

    Trouble, he said, started when the government approved transaction fees for CRFFN at the port.

    Under the fee regime, he said, importers are to pay N1.50 per kilo of every air cargo; N1,000 per 20-foot container, N2,000 per 40-foot container; N500 per car or Sport Utility Vehicles (SUV) and N1,000 per truck or 20-foot equivalent.

    Others, he said, include N2,000 per truck or 40-foot equivalent; N3.50 per every ton of general cargo and N1.00 per ton of every dry bulk cargo.

    The minister, he added, also approved registration fees for freight forwarding practitioners, including Nigerians and non-Nigerians, ranging from N7,500 to N50,000 annually depending on their category of membership and annual subscription of between N10,000 and N60,000 for members of the council.

    But a senior official of the Ministry of Transport, who does not want his name in print, said the issue had gone beyond transaction fees, noting that the government did not want to deal with an illegal body. He said with the expiration of the board’s tenure, its members lacked the authority to perform.

    Efforts by The Nation to get Olanrewaju on phone proved abortive.

     

  • Agency stopped from collecting ports fee as Customs kicks

    Agency stopped from collecting ports fee as Customs kicks

    The Federal Government has barred the Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarding in Nigeria (CRFFN) from collecting transaction fees at the ports.

    The order followed a protest letter by the Comptroller-General of Customs, Alhaji Dikko Abdullah Inde, to the Minister of Transport, Senator Idris Umar.

    The government gave CRFFN the green-light to collect the fees about two months ago.

    In the September 25 letter, signed by T. A. Musa, on Inde’s behalf, the Customs chief said: “The service is of the opinion that the charges will no doubt cause delays in the clearance of goods at the port, thereby, leading to port congestion. Its implementation will also increase the cost of doing business with its attendant implication on the cost of goods and services.”

    The Nation learnt that the Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA) also sent a similar letter to the minister.

    Confirming the suspension of the approval, CRFFN accused the Customs of seeking to continue to benefit from what it called freight forwarders’ ignorance.

    Chairman of its Governing Council Alhaji Hakeem Olanrewaju, accused Customs of sponsoring the Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA) and the National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders (NAGAFF) to kick against the collection of the fees which the CRFFN intended to use to train and professionalise freight forwarders.

    He said: “I was so shocked at the management of the Nigeria Customs which was the first organisation we visited when we started and asked for their collaboration on training. I believe the Nigeria Customs does not want us to grow, they still want to benefit from our ignorance which we want to stop, we want to do freight forwarding as it is being done in the whole world”.

    According to him, the Customs has been issuing licences to clearing agents over the years, but it has not been making any effort to train them.

    “This is why they call most of our people touts, but we don’t want to be touts anymore, we want to be of international best practices because 70 per cent of our jobs have been taken over by foreigners,” Olanrewaju said.

    But ANLCA president Alhaji Olayiwola Shittu, denied the allegation that the association is being used by Customs to scuttle the CRFFN deal.

    Shittu said members of the CRFFN Governing Council are occupying offices illegally, adding that their tenure expired on August 14.

    According to Shittu, members of the Governing Council had allegedly extended their tenure for another six months. He said any decision taken by the Governing Council after the said expiration of their tenure is null and void.

    He said: “It is statutory in the Act which established the Council that all elected members have a four year tenure. For this reason the tenure of the elected members of the Council has since expired on August 14, 2012. We are also aware that the Registrar, Mr Mike Jukwe has informed the Minister of Transport in writing in that regard. It is also a fact that the Council members have extended their tenure without the support of members of the Freight Forwarders Consultative Council Forum and the general congress of the registered members. Let us at this time make it clear that our Council administration is in breach by the activities of our Council members.”

    He alleged that CRFFN accredited the Association of Registered Freight Forwarders Nigeria (AREFFN), National Council of Managing Directors of Licensed Customs Agents (NCMDLCA) and the National Association of Air Freight Forwarders and Consolidators (NAFFAC), so that they can vote for it on critical issues.

    The accreditation of AREFFN, NCMDLCA and NAFFAC, he said was illegal since the meeting where they were accredited was held after the expiration of the tenure of the Governing Council.

    But a member of the CRFFN Governing Board and National President of the Institute of Freight Forwarding of Nigeria (IFFN), Dr. Zeb Ikokide, said the tenure of the members of the Governing Council has not expired.

    Ikokide said the council members’ tenure would expire next month.