Vincent Toritseju
Lagos — Founder of the National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders, NAGAFF, Mr. Boniface Aniebonam, has threatened the Registrar of the Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarders in Nigeria, CRFFN, Mr. Sam Nwakohu, to either enforce the Act of the Council or face the wrath of the group.
Speaking to the Registrar at the just concluded ‘Digitization of Cargo Import and Export in the Maritime Industry’ workshop organized by the Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarding in Nigeria, Aniebonam said that the freight forwarding fraught with unprofessional practitioners because the Council has refused to put its feet on the ground by enforcing the Act and beating people back to line.
He explained that the recent development in the Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents, ANLCA, where some people went to Kano to get judgment is rather unfortunate.
He said; ‘‘This is what has been going on for some time now when are we going to grow and get over these petty issues that are causing division in the industry.
‘You must enforce the law, some people went to Kano and got a Court injunction, how this help, this is what we live with everyday. What is wrong with us and that is why I am telling you that it is time to rise and enforce the law, please go and enforce the law or else I will take action that you may like.
“CRFFN is an agency of the government, what nonsense are you doing.”
Aniebonam also said that the problem of the industry is the non-enforcement of the laws regulating the industry.
He explained that if the CRFFN Act was not enforced, the Council will continue to be irrelevant adding that until this is done the Council will not earn the respect it deserves as an agency of government.
Reacting to the challenge, Sam Nwakohu said that the Council will not rush into taking action against any trade infraction without following due process.
He explained that the Council has a system of dealing with issues as they arise adding that with time freight forwarding practitioners will know that the Council has teeth to bite when the time comes.