The President, National Council of Managing Directors of Licensed Customs Agents (NCMDLCA), Lucky Eyis Amiwero has called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to stop the collection of the 4% Free-on Board on the value of Import by the Nigeria Customs Service, reorganize the inspection regime and lay clear and specific cost for the respective service, in line with international best practice.
He also requested for the reduction of the multilayer of Cost and Charges in Nigerian Ports so as to make them efficient and preferred.
According to a letter signed by Amiwero and addressed to the President , the NCMDLCA President stated that there is an urgent need to set up a committee of experts to review all port charges not tied to service and the Nigeria Customs Act , so as to reduce the multiplicity of cost in doing business in Nigerian ports .
He also asked that he Committee should look at the Nigeria Customs Service Act 2023, to review the duplication, contradiction and usurping of powers of the Minister and other agencies overlapping, that will conflict and affect the process of clearance with others, so as to harmonize, simplify and minimize port cost, which is presumed to be the highest with in the West and Central African Sub-region.
He asserted that the multilayers of fees is to be paid by the Importers, Manufactures and Licensed Customs Agents(LCA) as the Act clearly states, in Section 18-(1) subject to extant laws and regulation, that the Service shall keep and maintain bank account as may be approved by appropriate authority of Government into which shall be paid not less than 4% of the Free-on-Board value of Import ,revenue derived from assessment and collection of Cost-based user fees, annual or supplementary budgetary provision made by the government to the service and grant, aids, or donation from local or international development partners.
Amiwero added that in line with the provision of Section 59-(30) of the Nigeria Customs Service Act of 2023 , scanners are to be provided by the terminal operators or warehouse operators to facilitate clearance of goods.
Furthermore, he said by the provision of the Act, Customs is no longer to provide Non-Intrusive Inspection(NII)/ scanners, which is one of the major Trade Facilitation Tool and capital based, but it should provide for its need with the multilayer of charges and cost at the determent of the importer, manufactures and mostly the Licensed Customs Agent who are at the receiving end.
The multilayer of charges, cost based fees, special fees, and Advance ruling fees, contravenes Articles 6 of (WTO) Agreement of Trade Facilitation (ATF) ,he added.
Lucky Amiwero said discipline on fees and charges imposed on or in connection with importation and exportation penalties shall be limited in amount to the approximate cost of the service rendered on or in connection with the specific import or export operation in question and are not required to be linked to a specific import operation provided as they are levied for service that are closely connected to the Customs processing of goods.
“The Nigeria Customs Service Act 2023, was never subjected to stakeholders/Public hearing at the Senate, the importance of Customs Act, which involve Import, Export, Manufacturing,(MAN) (NACCIMA), (LCCI) warehouse operators, Licensed Customs Agency(LCA), Bankers, Inland Revenue Service, Central Bank of Nigeria, Terminal operators, Aviation, Tourism, (PEBEC), Shipping Companies NAFDAC, SON etc , who will be directly impacted on the process, procedures and implication of cost, where excluded and avoided.
“The only public hearing that was done was at the House of Representative, which stakeholders identified various areas of concern at the hearing, and the sponsor of the bill later bypassed the oublic hearing at the Senate with the various defects, that was severally rejected by the Presidency, which was later signed by the Buhari administration a month and few weeks to its exit.
“The Multilayers fees and charges is paid by importers through the Licensed Customs Agents(LCA) for the financing of Customs Service Operations tagged Fund of the Service, not revenue to government, which presupposes that all Customs processes and procedures will be cost- based to Licensed Customs Agents(LCA).
“The procedure outlined In the Act as having specific service are the defined function of Nigeria Customs Service and should not be tagged as special service.
It places Nigeria Customs Service a as sole entity, who initiates regulation , set out rules, and imposes cost at will, without any government control.
The Act process operates on principle that is Un-Customs, commercial and profit driven, which negates the Ease of Doing Business(EDB) thereby multiplying cost that is not tied to service.
“It is in clear contravention of WCO Kyoto Convention, which bases is principle on harmonization and simplification of Customs procedure and International Maritime Organization (IMO) / (FAL) Convention of International Maritime Traffic, which states, desire to facilitate maritime traffic by simplifying and reducing cost , time of the stay of ship and cargo.”
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