A foremost freight forwarder and Managing Director of Widescope Nigeria Limited, Dr. Segun Musa has stated emphatically that the International Cargo Tracking Note (ICTN) is a fraud and a surest way to further kill the economy.
Dr. Segun Musa stated this while interacting with the leadership of the Maritime Reporters Association of Nigeria (MARAN) who visited him at the headquarters of his company at Ogba, Ikeja, Lagos.
Musa, who is the National Vice President of the Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders (NAGAFF), said the ICTN is not different from the Customs Risk Assessment Report that profiles all cargo coming into Nigeria.
He informed that the reintroduction of ICTN would further add up to the cost of cargo clearance, narrating that with the intervention of the International Air Transport Association (IATA) acting on his petition, the ICTN was suspended at the airport.
He wondered why the ICTN, already jettisoned by the government, is being reintroduced by the government.
“ICTN is a fraud. This is a fastest way of killing the economy. We are waiting for them,” vowed Musa.
The foremost freight forwarder called the Nigeria Customs Service to implement automation of cargo clearance and delivery, stating that the Customs had promised that the B’Odogwu would address cargo clearance and facilitate trade.
“I want to believe it is achievable. What we need is the full automation; we are against use of companies but rather individuals with their identity number in cargo clearance. Everything from inspection to delivery should be automated. This is where the integrity of the Nigeria Customs Service will come to play,” said Musa.
Whether Customs will allow the automation to work or Customs agents will declare correctly, Musa averred that the world is changing and Nigeria cannot be left behind, saying “Nobody wants a change. The world is migrating away from analog. This is why investors do not want to come to Nigeria. To advance our economy, we must embrace change – automation.”
Still speaking on the Customs operations, Dr. Musa said there is nothing special in the revenue collection by the Customs but what we need from the Service is transparency.
“I was the lone voice calling for the privatisation of the Customs; anybody can generate revenue. The PIDA did it during the administration of General Sanni Abacha. Customs generating revenue is not special; a consortium can generate revenue while Customs is saddled with a border patrol. We did it before and we can do it again. If the Customs is not transparent enough, I will not hesitate to call on the government to privatise the customs,” Musa vowed.
He averred that incessant increase in customs duties and revenue target is an indicator that the national economy is not working and is also a lazy way by the politicians to run the economy. He pointed out that “the Comprehensive Import Supervision Scheme (CISS) is a fraud. Agents should have gone to court to challenge it. It is illegal. The CISS money was meant for inspection agencies to run their operations. EFCC should have investigated the government over the trillion of Naira of CISS.”
That foreigners have taken over freight forwarding in Nigeria, Musa said it is not true and maintained that freight forwarding is an international job and everyone is free to practice it. “Foreigners have not taken over freight forwarding in Nigeria. People need to understand that we live in a global neighborhood.
You must have strength and capacity if you want to participate in freight forwarding, an international job. Government should create a level playing field for all actors. We collect a lot of revenue for the government but we get nothing. Chinese government provide funds and enabling environment for her citizens to thrive everywhere. But it is not the case here in Nigeria,” said Musa.
Dr. Musa said the land border was closed because of rice, a decision which he described as irrational when the nation does not have the capacity to produce rice enough to feed her citizens. He maintained that no nation closes her border against goods it lacks capacity to produce enough, expressing fears that the nation may become a dumping ground for other countries as Nigeria does not have capacity and infrastructure to compete competitively in the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA).
“We don’t have production capacity to tap AfCFTA. We may likely become the dumping ground. We don’t have manufacturers again who can produce for enough for local consumption and for export under AfCFTA,” said Musa
On the National Single Window (NSW), Dr. Musa hinted that his fears about the National Single Window (NSW) had been allayed that NSW would not be handled alone by an agency, calling on the government to set up a committee of trustworthy actors to supervise the Single Window.
Assessing the performance of the Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy under Adegboyega Oyetola as the Minister, Musa said there is nothing new in marine and blue economy; “it has been with us for long. We cannot harness natural resources in our ocean if we don’t put the right person in the right places. The Minister loves talkshows and globetrotting. How do we harness the blue economy when you don’t have ships, equipment,” said Musa, who said year 2024 was filled with a lot of challenges and opportunities.
“In 2024, we had a lot of challenges – inconsistent in government policies, fluctuations in Forex that plummeted volumes of cargo traffic and the Customs putting pressure on importers with various ideas to meet its revenue target. We had a lot of opportunities to change the narratives but we never had associations strong enough to protect our interests. Hike in the cost of transportation dues to incessant increase in diesel did not help the situation. The Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarding in Nigeria (CRFFN) was handicapped by its teething problem as every freight forwarder bore his cross,” Musa said while highlighting 2024 but hopeful for a better 2024.
Musa, who is the National Vice President of the Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders (NAGAFF), said the ICTN is not different from the Customs Risk Assessment Report that profiles all cargo coming into Nigeria.
He informed that the reintroduction of ICTN would further add up to the cost of cargo clearance, narrating that with the intervention of the International Air Transport Association (IATA) acting on his petition, the ICTN was suspended at the airport.
He wondered why the ICTN, already jettisoned by the government, is being reintroduced by the government.
“ICTN is a fraud. This is a fastest way of killing the economy. We are waiting for them,” vowed Musa.
The foremost freight forwarder called the Nigeria Customs Service to implement automation of cargo clearance and delivery, stating that the Customs had promised that the B’Odogwu would address cargo clearance and facilitate trade.
“I want to believe it is achievable. What we need is the full automation; we are against use of companies but rather individuals with their identity number in cargo clearance. Everything from inspection to delivery should be automated.
This is where the integrity of the Nigeria Customs Service will come to play,” said Musa.
Whether Customs will allow the automation to work or Customs agents will declare correctly, Musa averred that the world is changing and Nigeria cannot be left behind, saying “Nobody wants a change.
The world is migrating away from analog. This is why investors do not want to come to Nigeria. To advance our economy, we must embrace change – automation.”
Still speaking on the Customs operations, Dr. Musa said there is nothing special in the revenue collection by the Customs but what we need from the Service is transparency.
“I was the lone voice calling for the privatisation of the Customs; anybody can generate revenue. The PIDA did it during the administration of General Sanni Abacha. Customs generating revenue is not special; a consortium can generate revenue while Customs is saddled with a border patrol.
We did it before and we can do it again. If the Customs is not transparent enough, I will not hesitate to call on the government to privatise the customs,” Musa vowed.
He averred that incessant increase in customs duties and revenue target is an indicator that the national economy is not working and is also a lazy way by the politicians to run the economy.
He pointed out that “the Comprehensive Import Supervision Scheme (CISS) is a fraud. Agents should have gone to court to challenge it. It is illegal. The CISS money was meant for inspection agencies to run their operations. EFCC should have investigated the government over the trillion of Naira of CISS.”
That foreigners have taken over freight forwarding in Nigeria, Musa said it is not true and maintained that freight forwarding is an international job and everyone is free to practice it. “Foreigners have not taken over freight forwarding in Nigeria. People need to understand that we live in a global neighborhood.
You must have strength and capacity if you want to participate in freight forwarding, an international job. Government should create a level playing field for all actors. We collect a lot of revenue for the government but we get nothing. Chinese government provide funds and enabling environment for her citizens to thrive everywhere. But it is not the case here in Nigeria,” said Musa.
Dr. Musa said the land border was closed because of rice, a decision which he described as irrational when the nation does not have the capacity to produce rice enough to feed her citizens.
He maintained that no nation closes her border against goods it lacks capacity to produce enough, expressing fears that the nation may become a dumping ground for other countries as Nigeria does not have capacity and infrastructure to compete competitively in the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA).
“We don’t have production capacity to tap AfCFTA. We may likely become the dumping ground. We don’t have manufacturers again who can produce for enough for local consumption and for export under AfCFTA,” said Musa
On the National Single Window (NSW), Dr. Musa hinted that his fears about the National Single Window (NSW) had been allayed that NSW would not be handled alone by an agency, calling on the government to set up a committee of trustworthy actors to supervise the Single Window.
Assessing the performance of the Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy under Adegboyega Oyetola as the Minister, Musa said there is nothing new in marine and blue economy; “it has been with us for long. We cannot harness natural resources in our ocean if we don’t put the right person in the right places.
The Minister loves talkshows and globetrotting. How do we harness the blue economy when you don’t have ships, equipment,” said Musa, who said year 2024 was filled with a lot of challenges and opportunities.
“In 2024, we had a lot of challenges – inconsistent in government policies, fluctuations in Forex that plummeted volumes of cargo traffic and the Customs putting pressure on importers with various ideas to meet its revenue target.
We had a lot of opportunities to change the narratives but we never had associations strong enough to protect our interests. Hike in the cost of transportation dues to incessant increase in diesel did not help the situation.
The Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarding in Nigeria (CRFFN) was handicapped by its teething problem as every freight forwarder bore his cross,” Musa said while highlighting 2024 but hopeful for a better 2024.
