Group protest alleged extortion of N100, 000 at Clarion bonded terminal 

A group of freight forwarders and Customs agents doing business at the Clarion bonded terminal operated by Clarion Shipping W.A. limited, has on Monday, protested the alleged extortion of N100, 000 on every container cleared at the terminal.

According to them, the money was for payment of a fee tagged ‘comptroller watch list’. They called on the Comptroller General of Custom (CGC) to intervene to help save their businesses from high cost.

They also alleged double extermination by Customs, an act that have been long abolished, even as they questioned why an Assistant Comptroller will be posted to man the Clarion terminal.

Ejike Methuselah, publicity secretary of the Association of Registered Freight Forwarders of Nigeria alleged that competitors were behind what is currently happening at the terminal.

“If you are going to equity, you must come with clean hands. We are in a competitive market and this is a conspiracy of a particular man in competition with Clarion,” he said.

Okechukwu Ogbonna, the CEO of Artix Autolinks services said the agents have been having problems clearing their goods from the bonded terminal for about two year ago.

“Whenever you import, to clear will be a problem and if you struggle to clear it; to get a truck to move it becomes a bigger problem. Customs does not care and they can put your work on hold without caring what is being paid on it as demurrage. I have lost up to N10 million to demurrage and extra money paid to Customs,” Ogbonna claimed.

Some of the placards carried by the group read: “Our documents are trapped in Clarion Tin-Can office since last week and Comptroller Musa administration has increased our cost of operations beyond understanding.”

“Before, we transfer our containers at almost no cost. Now, we pay as high as N50,000; N150, 000 and N200, 000 before it would be approved by the Comptroller. This has never happened in the history of Nigerian Customs,” they further alleged.

AMAKA ANAGOR