The Save Nigeria Freight Forwarders Importers Exporters Coalition (SNFFIEC) have kicked against the new tariff on imported vehicles which the Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo Iweala has directed the Nigeria Customs Service to commence full implementation saying Nigeria is unripe for it.
The group has also threatened to shut down the ports, unless the Federal Government rethinks the policy.
In an interactive session with journalists yesterday in Lagos, the national Coordinator of the group, Sir Osita Patrick Chukwu argued that the country is unripe for the new automotive policy, even as he urged the Nigeria Customs Service not to implement it.
The group also charged the Maritime Advocacy and Action Group MAAG, being led by Alhaji Alhassan Dantata to intervene within 72 hours, after which it will paralyse port activities.
According to him, “In as much as the power conferred on me as the coordinator of the SNFFIEC is concerned, our stand remains that the federal government should go back to status quo and if nothing happened, we will be waiting for MAAG to make input before shutting down the ports”.
“As a group in MAAG, we cannot stay here and look at our country and the masses suffer, we are now telling the coordinator of MAAG that if in a couple of days we do not hear from him, we will have no option than to create an unfriendly environment in the ports, he threatened ”
However,He noted that his group has rejected the circular signed by the Deputy Comptroller General of customs on tariff and trade on behalf of the Comptroller General on the automotive policy.
He added that the policy will ground the economy of the nation as most freight forwarders , importers and exporters will have to surrender their respective businesses at the detriment this inhuman policy.
Osita stressed that a large number of freight forwarders operating from the sector are into automobile clearance from the port and the policy will render most of them jobless.