VREG Kickstarts at KLT Terminal as Clearing Agents Register with N25,000

By DAPO OLAWUNI

Even as the pilot phase of the National Vehicle Registration Policy of the Federal Government known as (VREG) has kick-started at the KLT Terminal in Lagos, clearing agents have testified that they spent as high as N25,000 to register for the policy.

DAILY TREND NEWS exclusively gathered from clearing agents at the port that registration for VREG is now a prerequisite for taking delivery of vehicles at the port.

“I have registered for VREG at KLT Terminal when I wanted to pick up some containers. I had to register before I could punch, I spent 25k” a clearing agent said

The e-copy of the printed receipt issued to one of the companies; Port Exchange Multiservices Ltd showed that the clearing agent had registered to clear four vehicles at N25,384.

The Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs. Zainab Ahmed had stated that the VREG is powered by interconnected interactions of key agencies, parties, and stakeholders.

The VREG policy of the Federal Government is to reduce vehicle theft, enhance national security and generate revenue for the government.

The ministry is implementing this scheme in collaboration with state governments and the Nigeria Customs Service.

According to the Finance Minister, records have shown that Nigeria is a hub of stolen vehicles, and the VREG is designed address anomalies associated with importation of vehicles, kidnapping and other crimes.

She said the stakeholder relationships that will facilitate the achievement of the goals of VREG include: Interchange of information with Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) and state revenue systems on nationwide vehicle registration, ownership, history, and for proper road traffic regulation and violation enforcement.

The stakeholder relationships also include providing the Nigerian Customs with guidance in all clearing, duties, registration and redistribution of vehicle, targeted at ensuring that all vehicles are trackable and taxable.

This is also to generate more revenues; aggregation and regularisation of vehicle insurance across the country when the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) is integrated into VREG.

The stakeholder relationships also include “communication between Central Bank of Nigeria’s moveable asset registry and VREG, to provide dynamic records of vehicular assets thus boosting lendability to Nigerians; integration with Nigerian Police Force and security agencies such as Office of the National Security Adviser, to facilitate robust nationwide vehicular tracking, and comprehensive theft and other vehicle-related crimes reporting.

The national vehicle registry policy of the federal government “will, among others, serve as a single source of validation at the point of vehicle registration while capturing and storing all vehicular information over the life cycle of every vehicle for the purpose of effective motor vehicle administration, ensuring the enforceability of penalties placed on vehicles by regulators across board and ensuring accurate monitoring, documentation and tracking of vehicular activities across the nation to enhance national security.

Since the Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget, and National Planning is saddled with the responsibility of managing the nation’s finances and revenue streams, Mrs. Ahmed stated: “In the midst of dwindling revenue orchestrated by falling oil prices, mono economy and further worsened by revenue leakages from unplugged loopholes such as customs duty payment evasion, it became imperative that the government be responsive to these issues.