By Steve Agbota
The Nigerian shipowners have called for forensic audit of the controversial Cabotage Vessel Financing Fund (CVFF) to determine exactly how much has accrued into the commercial banks since its inception before it was moved into Treasury Single Account (TSA).
The CVFF was established under the Cabotage and Inland Shipping (Cabotage) Act 2003, to provide finance to indigenous ship-owners to maintain their vessels or purchase new ones.
The CVFF is accumulated fund that represents a two per cent contribution by indigenous ship owners on every contract done in Nigerian maritime sector.
Chairman, Starz Investments Company Limited, Mr. Greg Ogbeifun, said since the establishment of Cabotage Act, not a dime of the fund has been disbursed, saying that operators continue to contribute two per cent of their contract values into the fund.
Ogbeifun stated this at the 2022 stakeholders forum, organised by Alumni of Maritime Academy of Nigeria Oron (AMANO), with the theme: “The State of the Nigerian Maritime Domain in 2022 and Beyond”, in Lagos.
In his presentation entitled: “How to be among the Respected Maritime Nations,” Ogbeifun recommended forensic audit of how much the fund has accrued from the inception of the Act.
According to him, there is a need for appropriate guidelines for the disbursement of the fund as demanded by the Act taking into cognizance of the Treasury Single Account (TSA).
He said the law demands that the Minister of Transportation has the responsibility to develop the guidelines for the disbursement of CVFF, adding that nobody can touch the fund until guidelines have been developed and whoever touches the fund has committed crime.
“Under the former guidelines, the contributions of the fund was going into the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) and NIMASA was warehousing the money into commercial banks but when there is a change of government, the fund was transferred into TSA,” he said.
He said the existing guidelines can no longer be accessible and there is need to review the guidelines to take cognizance of the fact that the money is now in government’s coffers, adding that the law has to be changed before the money can be disbursed.
In his goodwill message, NIMASA Director General, Dr. Bashir Jamoh, said that CVFF is being politicised, the fund is going to be disbursed.
He explained that the issue of audit is part of statutory requirement the NIMASA account must be audited by Audited General of Federation.