By Steve Agbota
Following Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) decision to deactivate Five Star Logistics Terminal on the Customs portal, port stakeholders have lamented an impending huge economic loss to the nation.
According to industry stakeholders, several fast track goods and reefer cargoes are already stuck at the terminal following the impromptu deactivation on Customs e-portal, an action said to be a negation of the Customs and Excise Management Act (CEMA).
Worried by the fiscal and supply chain challenges from this development, economic experts have also condemned Customs approach as the punitive action on the seaport terminal inhibits the operations of other service users at the port facility.
Speaking to the News Diet, a veteran freight forwarder who works at the terminal but preferred anonymity, revealed that the N97 million being demanded by Customs for unpaid assessment borders on some vehicles, which are suspected to have entered the nation via land borders.
He expressed dissatisfaction as the situation has brought discomfort to other port users especially those who have fast track containers and reefer cargoes stuck at the terminal, lamenting that Nigerian shippers will suffer additional demurrage costs even if the terminal decides to waive storage charges after the quagmire.
Meanwhile, he observed that few shipping companies make regular calls at Five Star with thousands of new and used vehicles and these shipping companies don’t transmit single manifests which allegedly led to the unpaid assessment being demanded by Customs.
Based on these observations, he advised Customs to carryout forensic investigation using the Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) and stressed that CEMA stipulates that declarants, who are freight forwarders, should be held liable and not the terminal operator.
Also speaking, a close source to the former General Manager of Five Star Logistics Terminal, Mr. Wolfgang Schneider, told our correspondent that last year the former General Manager complained that Customs wrote to the company about the investigation but didn’t avail full details of the vehicles to enable Five Star carry out its investigation.
While Customs sent Single Goods Declaration (SGD) documents, names of consignees and the Demand Notices on the said problematic vehicles; he said that upon investigation the vehicles, for which Customs demanded unpaid assessment, neither manifested in the terminal nor discharged in the terminal.
The source also argued that Customs could easily trace the defaulting freight agents using VIN and wondered what role the Enforcement Unit of Customs played if the vehicles actually left the terminal without paying duties.
According to him, the action of NCS has shown that the Service is more concerned about collecting the N97 million from the terminal, while the culprits roam free and nothing is done to prevent the anomaly from reoccurring.
Nevertheless, owners of fast track containers at the terminal have become apprehensive over delayed delivery of their containers, while those with time-bound reefer containers have also started registering complaints over their consignments stuck at the terminal.