APFFLON Warns Against Auctioning of Cargoes During NAFDAC Strike, Calls for Customs Grace Period Extension
APFFLON President, Otunba Frank Ogunojemite (left) and Comptroller General of Customs, Wale Adeniyi
By DAPO OLAWUNI
The Africa Association of Professional Freight Forwarders and Logistics of Nigeria (APFFLON) has called on the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) to withdraw its recent public notice mandating importers and their agents to clear overtime vehicles and cargoes within 30 days or risk them being auctioned.
The appeal comes in response to a two-week-long strike by the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) staff, and ongoing banking system disruptions, both of which have hampered the cargo clearing process.
APFFLON’s President, Otunba Frank Ogunojemite, highlighted these concerns in a statement during a conversation with reporters at his Lagos office on Wednesday.
Ogunojemite stressed the urgency of the situation, explaining that the strike and banking issues are beyond the control of importers, who are already suffering significant losses due to demurrage fees.
“With this development, a lot of cargoes are trapped at the ports, not because the owners don’t want to take delivery, but because they have been rendered helpless by the ongoing NAFDAC strike and banking system disruptions,” Ogunojemite explained.
“These importers are already losing a lot to demurrage payments, and Customs should not add to their woes by auctioning their goods.”
He argued that these extenuating circumstances should be taken into consideration before issuing such a directive, urging the NCS to hold off on any auctions until the situation improves.
“APFFLON is appealing to the Nigeria Customs Service to withdraw the notice for now, pending when these two variables affecting seamless cargo clearance at the ports are resolved,” he said.
Ogunojemite further urged the Federal Ministry of Finance to review the state of Nigeria’s banking system, which he described as “epileptic.”
He warned that if the 30-day auction notice is enforced under the current conditions, many importers could lose their investments, which would have a detrimental effect on the nation’s economy.
“The NCS should shelve the idea of cargo auction for now, pending when these issues are resolved, so as not to allow importers and their agents to lose their investment for no fault of theirs,” he added.
“If Customs proceeds with this auction plan, it will result in significant losses for importers, and that will not be good for the economy at this critical time.”
The Nigeria Customs Service had earlier issued a public notice advising importers to clear their overtime goods within 30 days to avoid forfeiture to the Federal Government.
The notice, supported by a Motion Ex-parte (Suit No: FHC/L/MISC/680/2024) dated October 15, 2024, emphasized that any goods not cleared within the grace period would be auctioned.
The Customs directive read: “Accordingly, Importers/Agents of the overtime goods are given 30 days grace period from the date of this publication to process and clear their goods or forfeit same to the Federal Government of Nigeria. Please note that, in accordance with NCS Act 2023, Nigeria Customs Service will commence the auction of all uncleared overtime goods immediately after the expiration of the grace period.”
