600 Vehicles Trapped At Tin Can Port, As Customs Releasing Crashes

…Tension Grips Popular Car Park ‘C’ Operators

By DAPO OLAWUNI

Stakeholders operating at the popular Car Park ‘C’ of the Tin Can Island Port of Lagos has raised an alarm that activities of the Nigeria Customs Service had been halted for the past two weeks due to breakdown of it’s internet servers.

Consequently, not less than 600 vehicles were allegedly abandoned at the terminal, while clearing agents lamented that they were suffering payment of demurrage and rent to terminal operators and Shipping Companies.

Cordinator of the Car Park ‘C’ under the aegis of Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA) Alhaji Sheriff Cisse told DAILY TREND on Thursday that whenever there is network challenges at the Car Park’C’, the OC terminal is expected to take all the documents to the Customs Processing Center (CPC) where the Area Controller office is located for proper releasing.

He however lamented that, for the past weeks, such entries and documents were not being attended to.

Efforts by DAILY TREND to get clarification from the customs command proved abortive as all calls and messages placed to the Public Relations Officer were not answered.

Speaking however, Alhaji Sheriff said “We have a lot of challenges at the car park C, for more than two weeks now, there is no network, no server from Customs to release vehicles. There are two releasing seats, we have truck seat and the vehicle seat.
There is no network to release vehicles from both seats.

“The officer on the truck seat; Dahiru is not stationed in Car Park’C’, they usually take the documents to him at Port and Cargo Terminal. However since last week, the officer did not come to work at all

“As at Wednesday, there are more than 600 entries trapped, and another vessel has berthed yesterday. The vehicles trapped at the terminal would continue to attract demurrage and the management of Five Star Logistics Terminal has said it is not their problem, it is the customs that should have told the terminal operators to waive these charges.

“Whenever there is no network at Car Park’C’, we usually take these jobs to the CPC where the office of the Area Controller is located, yet they don’t attend to these documents

The ANLCA Cordinator said that Chairman of Tin Can Port Chapter, Alhaji Mohammed Mojeed is aware of the challenge and his working with the customs area controller to resolve it.