Customs and clearing agents are like husband and wife – Onyeka, MD, Murdom Trust Link
By BROWN CHIMEZIE
Thursday, October 29, 2009

As Nigeria continues in search of solutions to problems of unemployment facing her teeming population, a member of international freight forwarders forum and Chairman, CEO Murdom Trust Link Ltd, a freight-forwarding outfit, Chief Dom Onyeka, has declared that in spite of several challenges faced by freight forwarders, the sector remains one of the largest employer of labour. In an interview with Daily Sun, Chief Onyeka spoke about other challenges facing the sector and how government can come to their aid by creating a conducive environment for the business to grow.

Excerpts
Experience as a freight forwarder
I had my bit after school with an importing firm, Bravo West Africa Ltd, based in Onitsha, as accounting officer. I majored into freight forwarding through my master, Onyebuchi Uzo (Ajeleje). He trained me and in 1987 I set up Murdom Trust Ltd. and I have equally trained a lot of people who are doing well in the sector today. Professionally, I went through Nigeria Freight Forwarding Academy and I am a member of International Freight Forwarders Forum. The sector has improved tremendously, especially with technological advancement that has made the world a global village. And one has no option but to continue to improve so as to fit into the ever growing innovation in virtually all aspects of human endeavor. However, experience, they say, is the best teacher but teachers never stop learning so I have not stopped learning.

Regulation
The sector is regulated by government agencies. By this I mean the Nigeria Customs Service who regulate all the licensed agents, which some people thought was not right, but a voice came up and said it was not proper, hence there is now a body established by the National Assembly, known as National Agency for Freight Forwarding headed by a member of the freight forwarding executive.

Effect of port charges and tariff on the sector
This is one of the challenges we face, which led to the strike by freight forwarders early this year, after which shipping companies agreed on reduction in charges, but later went back to the old system. Before now the government was in charge of the Nigeria Ports Authority. Yes port charges and tariffs were under control but the port was not properly managed. So when the port was privatized, the new management decided to charge more for proper management and of course, it is a welcome development because anything good is money. To me, I will say the charges are in consonance with the services they render.

Freight forwarders strike: Can you throw more light on this?
The then Minister of Transport convened a meeting of all stakeholders which included the Customs, freight forwarders, and banks and it was agreed that these charges by shipping companies should be cut down, which they did for a while. They increased charges at will and clearing agents have been bearing this and, at a point we could not take more increment, hence the reason for the strike. However, before we embarked on the strike, we have through our union, channeled our plight to the shipping companies but they did not care, so we had no option but to down tools. But as I talk to you now, they have reversed to the old system because they could not honour the agreement reached at the stakeholders meeting that led to the calling off of the strike.

Destination inspection
The idea came up under Chief Olusegun Obasanjo’s government and it was the aspiration of freight forwarders and stakeholders that pre-shipment inspection be stopped because the goods were inspected by foreigners where the importer bought the goods and who sometimes don’t see the goods but just act based on the document. Hence, destination inspection is a reverse of that whereby goods are declared by the owner (the importer) and, based on that, duty is issued on RAR (Risk Assessment Report). You find that this enable the importer to declare truly what he has in the container, and where the reverse is the case, he will be prosecuted because he made a false declaration. This has reduced corruption and fraud but that does not mean that it has been completely eliminated hence the situation is better manage now than before.

State of roads leading to major sea ports
We are all living witnesses of how much man-hours port users and the general public lose in traffic, especially along Apapa-Oshodi expressway everyday, that is Apapa and Tin Can Island ports- because of pot holes on the road. I want to commend Governor Fashola and President Musa Umaru Yar’Adua for giving the expressway attention, as traffic has reduced since minor repairs took place recently on the road because, before now, people were avoiding the road like plague. I want to call on government to dislodge tankers that park along the road, leaving only one or two lanes for motorists.

On this same road a lot of trucks and vehicles are abandoned, so I think Government should do something about it. Another challenge is corruption. Because of the ugly state of our economy, most people see the port as an avenue to enrich themselves and thereby engage in all sorts of foul means to earn a living. In fact, majority of port users go there to make money. So, we have a few people who have the interest of the country at heart.

You find out that it is a case of survival of the fittest, the stronger arm-twists the smaller arm, hence if you don’t have a godfather that can give you bill of lading, hunger will kill you and you die off. Because of this, unnecessary competition, containers are cleared without following due process and this has affected our economy negatively.

Federal Operations Unit
It still boils down to corruption. If the job is done the way it ought to be done by freight forwarders, there will be no need for federal operations. If we don’t have contraband in the port, there will be no need for Federal Operations. A lot of irregularities go on in the port with the collaboration of some Customs officials and their colleague’s stationed outside are aware and will apprehend such goods after release. This portrays the sector in a bad light because it is like dog-eat-dog world. A situation where Customs at the port will release goods and their colleagues outside the port will apprehend such goods because it was not properly release means something is wrong with the system. As soon as things are done properly, there will be no need for FOU.

Relationship between Customs and Freight Forwarders
It is like husband and wife relationship because no matter what, the home must be run. If a husband is not happy with the wife, he has to manage her for the interest of the children. So Customs cannot do without the agents and the agents cannot do without the Customs for the interest of Nigeria. The Customs agent relates with importers because they are intermediaries between the importers and Customs have nothing doing in the ports if the goods are not there, so there is no way they will not relate.

Make N450,000 Online Monthly. Click Here