Omotola has just retired from the services of the federal government of Nigeria as an Assistant Director. Not given to frivolities and sharp practices, he had enjoyed his assignments as a federal employee and relied exclusively on his salary which met his basic needs.
Soon after retirement and for lack of what next to do to earn an income, he invested his entre savings and gratuity into the exportation of Charcoal. His investment decision was based on a Seminar he had attended. At the Seminar which had been advertised severally in a national newspaper, participants had been made to believe that the business of Charcoal export was a gold mine. Disaster however struck. Omotola’s Charcoal buyer had stopped communicating with him soon after receiving the two Container loads of commodity. What was more, the payment arrangement Omotola had entered into was called ‘’cash against documents’’ that is, payment after the buyer has confirmed the safe arrival of the cargo by collecting the documents of export. Put differently, the importer overseas was now firmly in custody of the cargo and had disappeared into thin air. Omotola was stuck. All he had lived and worked for had evaporated into thin air. He had never met the importer. He hardly even knew how to locate Germany on the global map not to contemplate a visit to the European country in search of the fraudster. What next to do? Lick his wounds; leave the matter to God and perhaps die miserably in a short few years?
There have been several other stories of Nigerians who have suffered similar fate such as Omotola in international trade business. Because of the mouth watery returns expected from such investments, so many have gone into the business without knowing a thing or two about what it truly entails. Businessmen of all hues, some quite experienced have fall victims of international trade fraud and or shortages without as much as making any efforts at recovering their several millions of Naira lost to the deals.
The mistake we all make, including you the reader is to think that this affects only those directly concern. Such losses become unfortunately capital flights which the nation’s economy must absorb. And when this happens, it turns around to become a pain we must all share in one way or the other. Exporters and Importers abandon such claims for one of several reasons. While some are completely ignorant of what to do, some lack the technical expertise, while the vast majority lacks the financial muscle to pursue the claims in foreign jurisdictions. In some cases, you will even find that the Nigerian victims had from the very commencement of the transaction prejudiced their own chances by entering into contracts that say that judicial intervention in the event of a breach will be governed by the laws of the foreign partner and in their own countries.
It is particularly painful that even as I write this, many Nigerians still suffer these losses and pains when for over sixteen years, the Federal Government through the auspices of the Nigerian Shippers Council has established a maritime legal aid organization to mitigate these experiences and losses. Established and known as the Cargo Defence Fund, the organization takes up the cases of importers and exporters who lodge complaints of such experiences at its secretariat. The services of the Fund are open to anyone who has suffered losses such as damaged cargo, short landed cargo, outright fraud as well as unwholesome actions and inactions of local service providers such as Insurance, terminal operators, shipping agencies etc.
When a complaint is lodged at the Cargo Defence Fund, the Fund undertakes an in-house screening process to determine the best option to adopt for the claims recovery. The Fund is empowered to file a lawsuit either in Nigeria or overseas on behalf of a complainant or to convene arbitration or mediation for such purpose. The interesting feature of the process is that legal fees whether in local or foreign currencies are undertaken solely by the Fund. No down payment or financial contribution is requested of the complainant at this stage. Complainants only make a token financial contribution after the Fund has succeeded in making a claim recovery on their behalf. The contribution which will be a percentage of the recovered sum is intended to keep the Fund in business to help others. Where the Fund fails to make claims recovery, it may on the approval of its Board of Trustees pay a token grant to the claimant to keep him or her in business. Examples of such token grants abound in charcoal and stock fish businesses which have suffered much of foreign partners’ fraud.
It should perhaps interest you to know that although the Cargo Defence Fund was established under the auspices of the Nigerian Shippers Council, it does not operate as a government parastatal but a not-for profit public/ private partnership. The Fund thus has the integrity and weight of a public organization and the creativity and mobility of private sector operations. Importers and exporters may also approach the Fund for technical guidance such as in how to manage their transactions even before signing up the deal, Further enquiries on this and other articles that appear on this column may be obtained through the telephone number and email address that appear below the column writer’s name. We are ever willing at appropriate times to also publish reactions and contributions to discuss on this column.