The group, which is made up of seasoned licensed customs agents across the country, flayed the promoters of the project as it was a waste of resources and duplication of the single window platform already put in place by the management of Webb Fontaine Limited and used by Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) for the clearance of goods in the nation’s seaports.
In a position paper it presented to the Chairman of the House’s 12-man Ad-Hoc Committee on Concession Agreement, Hon. Leo Okuweh Ogor, NCMDLCA argued that the process that led to the award of the contract to the management of Single Window Systems and Technology Limited (SWSTL) did not follow due process and transparency, even as it called for the review of the port reforms that led to the hand over of the nation’s seaports to private investors.
Founder of NCMDLCA, Mr. Lucky Amiwero, told participants at the on-going public hearing on concession agreement at the National Assembly that there was no need for the Federal Government to enter into a fresh contract for a facility that was already in place.
Giving an insight into how the present process is presently implemented, Amiwero said: “The question to be asked is why the duplication, the special feature of the new platform, the special features/hardware that will be deployed to take over the present platform and implication in terms of process and procedure to import trading activities due to customised process”.
The Economic Commission for Europe (ECA), United Nations Centre for Trade4 Facilitation and Electronic Business (UN/CEFACT) defines single window as a facility that allows parties involved in trade and transport to lodge standardised information and documents with a single entry point to fulfil all import, export, and transit-related regulatory requirements. If information is electronic, then individual data elements should only be submitted once.
It is a model aimed at eliminating the multiplicity of the processes involved in cargo clearance, which has made Nigeria one of the most expensive countries to do business in the world. SWSTL management had two years ago proposed to the Federal Government its ability to put in place a single window model for the clearance of goods imported into the country.
The proposal, which was accepted by the Federal Executive Council (FEC), mandated the Federal Ministry of Finance to work out the modalities for its implementation.
Amiwero, who is also the Managing Director of Eyis Resources Ltd, contended that going by what is presently in use in the nation’s seaports, airports and international borders, there was no need to bring in a fresh facility for the clearance of cargo in the country.
He also stressed the need to review the various port concession agreements in Nigeria in order to control inflation and harness maritime potential for the good of Nigerians, the government and genuine investors.
He made it clear to members of the Ad Hoc Committee on Concession Agreement that it was wrong to increase port charges arbitrarily.
He bemoaned the high cost of clearing consignments at the nation’s ports. He also condemned the arbitrary increases in port charges by the concessionaires whom he said might have misinformed or misled the government functionaries to achieve profiteering goals by enriching a privileged few Nigerians and foreigners at the expense of the vast majority of the Nigerian people.
Amiwero recalled the events of the pre-port concession era, saying that when the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) advertised the concession of the port in 2003, no fewer than 37 issues were canvassed by the bureau to justify the concession.
According to him, the management of BPE said the port reform would improve efficiency of operations, reduce the cost of cargo clearance, facilitate further development of the nation’s transport infrastructure, eliminate congestion and facilitate the emergence of Nigeria as a hub for the West Africa sub-region.
He expressed regret that five years after the exercise was concluded, the objectives for which it was meant to achieve have not been attained. His words: “Five years after the ports were concession, these objectives, laudable as they appear, are far from being achieved, as cost of doing business at the ports has risen far higher than what used to be.”
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