Nigeria Customs still adopting physical examination as cargo scanners idle away – Report

Officials of the Nigeria Customs Service are still glued wholly to physical examination of cargos at the seaports, despite the acquisition and deployment of scanners to the Apapa, Tin-Can Island, Lagos and Onne seaports Port Harcourt by the Federal Government.

The scanners are meant to speed up cargo inspection and quicken evacuation of imported cargoes from the seaports but the equipment has remained non-functional at the various entry points into the country.

Maritime experts say such physical examination by the NCS and other government agencies involved has increased the cargo dwell time by over 100 per cent.

For instance, while about 50 containers are physically examined at the Apapa port daily and 60 examined daily at Tin-can Island port presently, about 150 containers could be examined with the use of one scanner at Apapa and the number could double should both scanners be operational.

Leadership reports that the expectations that the deployment of scanners would bring a positive shift in cargo clearance, eliminate delays and enhance timely delivery of cargo to owners by clearing agents had been dashed.

It says with 100 per cent physical examination, importers incur huge demurrage charges from shipping companies and storage charges from terminal operators.

The Chairman of the Nigerian Port Consultative Forum (NPCF), Kunle Folarin, was quoted as saying the burden of the demurrage incurred by importers or consignees due to the lack of scanners at the ports would be passed to the consumer, which would create another level of inflation in the economy.

He said while Customs had settled for 100 per cent physical examination and inspection of cargoes, they would sabotage all efforts at ensuring scanners arrive and are installed at the ports due to the huge money they get illegally.

President of the Shippers Association of Lagos (SALS), Rev. Jonathan Nicol, said Nigeria was losing over N800 billion monthly due to lack of 24-hour seaport operation and about N9.6 trillion lost in a year.

According to Nicol, the port is a money-spinning machine, as payments are daily made to shipping companies, terminal operators, customs, transporters, Ministries, Departments, and Agencies (MDAs) in the ports.

-Report largely from Leadership