Daily Independent Online.
*
Thursday, July 01, 2004.
‘Implement destination
inspection’
By Walter Ukaegbu
Maritime Correspondent, Lagos
Worried by the delay in the implementation of
Destination Inspection (DI) earlier slated for January, this year, freight
forwarders have called on the government to make its position public on what
has become of the inspection regime.
The government had, in 2001, promised to introduce
destination inspection on July 1, 2002, but has since then shifted the take-off date about four times. As at
last year, it was expected that the inspection regime, which would have
replaced pre-shipment inspection, would start January this year, but the
government set up a committee on the scheme, headed by the Transport Minister,
Dr. Abiye Sekibo.
The committee was given three months, from December,
to submit its report. But it is yet to do so.
President, Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs
Agents (ANLCA), Alhaji Inua Mohammed, said by keeping silent on the issue, the
government appears not to have considered the benefits derivable from the
inspection regime. Mohammed believes that three months is enough for the committee
to complete its assignment, adding that June was the seventh month since the
committee was set up.
To him, that the committee has taken such long time
was an indication that the government has abandoned destination inspection. He
explained that the regime would benefit Nigerian importers, particularly the
manufacturers.
Said he: “The government needs to let us know
what has become of destination inspection and what is still delaying the
scheme.”
The ANLCA president said that once the scheme is
introduced, importers will no longer suffer the problem of having to wait for
Clean Report of Inspections (CRl) for weeks after the consignment has arrived
the country.
Importers will save the money spent on payment of
demurrage incurred while waiting for the arrival of CRl, he added.
Besides, he explained that the government will save what is being paid
to foreign pre-shipment inspection agents, pointing out that the discrepancies
discovered during examination of goods at the ports were enough to try destination
inspection. According to him, the government should summon enough courage and
political will to allow Dl to take off, adding that the nation stands to gain
more from this than the present inspection regime.
"The government should know this better, I do
not need to say it. Dl is for national interest. It will save us the stress and
loss of money paid on demurrage while waiting for CRI", he said. Mohammed
opined that in introducing DI, the government should allow the Nigeria Customs
Service (NCS) to take full charge of the scheme instead of contracting it to
those he described as "outsiders".
"I am convinced that there is nothing to DI that
the new management team of Customs cannot handle. The government should have
more confidence in the Customs and give this assignment to it. It is not new to
them, as the examination being carried out is all destination inspection",
he said. He reminded the government that
some importers, last year and early this year, brought in some
containers without CRI. He advised that in giving Customs the assignment, a
good welfare package should be introduced to motivate them.
"A good welfare package for the officers and men
in the service will address the problem of corruption by, at least, 80 per
cent. The service should be well funded so that they can meet most of their
demands", he said.
He added that officers, who discover fraud, should be
rewarded by promotion, if possible double. According to him, this will make the
officers give their best by going after fraudulent officers. The ANLCA boss had
recommended some measures, which are capable of impacting positively on quick
clearance of goods at the ports to achieve the 48-hour target of the
government. Among the measures is the need to reintroduce some concessions for
some bulk importers, who have goods to clear at the ports. Mohammed, who
recalled that the service used to have what he described as pre-release policy,
was of the view that this should be reintroduced in the ports.
