ANLCA BOTship: Dayo Azeez Pursues Simplified Cargo Clearance Procedure at Ports

One of the contestants vying for a seat on the Board of Trustees (BoT) of the association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents ( ANLCA), Dayo Azeez, has called for the simplification of cargo clearance procedure at Nigerian ports, saying that as it is, the customs clearance procedure is too cumbersome.

He also said his decision to contest for the BoT election is motivated by a desire to sustain and deepen the unity and peace in ANLCA as well as bring about development to the association.

Dayo Azeez was one of the then five BoT members who solidly defended the association’s integrity against several intimidations and attacks from those who tried to destroy the association, to berth the ANLCA that exists today.

Speaking in a chat with journalists in Lagos on Monday, Azeez, a former Vice President of ANLCA and the Managing Director of Mambillah Shipping Ltd said he has the wealth of experience and understanding of the association, which he believes will enable him help members address operational challenges in cargo clearance at the port.

Azeez, who is also proprietor of several hospitality businesses said he aspires to work with other elected board members to engage customs on the need to simplify the clearance procedure at the port.

He said, “The cargo clearance procedure now is very cumbersome with Customs issuing different queries here and there. If by the grace of God I’m elected, I and the other BoT members will liase with the NECOM so that we can meet with Customs management and the Customs board to look at the issues.

“Those days, we use to have long rooms but now they call it CPC and mostly every job go to CPC for one query or the other. So we’ll look at it to know where the problem is coming from whether from the importer or Customs side because as agents, it is all the documents that the customs gave to us that we will work upon. So in a nutshell, we want to simplify the clearance procedure to make it easier for the agents. That is one of my agenda.

“Another reason I’m contesting is to deepen the unity of members of the association. We don’t want to have any division in the association. And that will start with the chapters election of the association. It must be transparent.And anybody that is not qualified is not qualified there will be no sentiment attached to it. So that when there is an election and a winner emerges, it will be glaring to everybody that a winner has emerged and there won’t be need going to the court to challenge the outcome of an election.

Azeez also expressed his determination to professionalize Customs brokerage and put ANLCA on the pedestal of respected professional associations.

He streessed the importance of indigenizing the clearing profession to enhance national security , stating that if elected, he and other BoT members would liase with Customs to ensure that only Nigerians can clear goods, thereby preventing potential connivance between shipping companies and the expatriates in the clearing job to clear dangerous imports.

“Most importantly, we will liase with the management of customs to indigenize the clearing profession. Now, we see a lot of foreigners coming to do clearing job even though they will get a Nigerian as a director but that is not enough for national security because it is the expatriates that ship the goods and the foreign clearing firm will be the one to clear it. In the course of that, there could be connivance between the shipper and the clearing agents.
But if the clearing profession is indigenalize, that will mean only Nigerians can clear goods,”” he said.