FG loses over N5tr revenue to corruption, others at ports’

The Federal Government loses an estimated N5 trillion revenue annually because of the prevalent corrupt business environment at the port, Checkout Magazine learnt.

The Vice-Chairman, Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA), Dr Kayode Farinto told The Nation last weekend that the government needed to beam its searchlight on its agencies at port to fix the economy, invest in infrastructure and create jobs for millions of Nigerians.

The agencies, to be focused on, according to Farinto, include the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), the Nigerian Maritime administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), the Nigerian Shippers Council (NSC) and the Standard Organisations of Nigeria (SON).

“The Federal Government is losing over N5trillion to corrupt officials and foreigners operating at the port. There is no iota of doubt that money lost based on the high level of corruption at ports weighs very heavily on the economy of the country, forcing the government to borrow several billions of dollars to finance our budget.

“As part of previous efforts to find solutions to the highly corrupt business environment at the port, stakeholders including the Technical Unit on Governance and Anti-Corruption Reform (TUGAR), the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP), the Independent Corrupt Practices and other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), NPA, NSC, and the Maritime Anti-Corruption Network (MACN) carried out a corruption risk assessment with a particular focus on maritime operations. The risk assessment identified major areas where corruption was a prevalent risk in the business ecosystem, which MACN addressed through collective action efforts in collaboration with the NSC and all government agencies operating in the maritime sector.

‘The collaboration resulted in the introduction of Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for port operators and a Grievance Reporting Mechanism (GRM) to uphold the standards set by the SOPs. Following the establishment of the GRM, the Port Service Support Portal (PSSP) was created as a web portal to administer the complaint collection and communication process under the management and coordination of the NSC. The web portal was created as a one stop shop to resolve complaints in the port industry professionally, confidentially, and efficiently and to increase the levels of accountability of port officials in their adherence to the SOPs. “

Farinto said if the NCS could generated over N1 trillion between January and June this year despite the 100 per cent physical examination being carried out by the service on over 90 per cent of containers coming to the port which gives room for corruption, that means the Service alone can generate over N3 trillion by the end of the year if the port is automated. If you calculate the amount that goes into private pickets through the other agencies, you will understand the huge amount the government is losing to corrupt officials and foreigners operating at the port,” he said.

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