Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Gboyega Oyetola

The Maritime Advocacy Foundation MAF, a pressure group in the industry, has assured that it has no vested interest in the proposed amendment of the Nigerian Shippers’ Council Act other than ensuring that the interest of shippers (importers and exporters) are adequately protected and not left in the lurch in the new scheme of things.

Speaking against the background of the seemingly conflicting interests in the new bill, which almost marred the public hearing held by the House of Representatives in Abuja, Monday, Publicity Coordinator of the Foundation, Dr. Eugene Nweke, also noted that the Foundation supports the amendment of the NSC Act, which would give a legal backing to the function of the Nigerian Shippers Council as the Port Economic Regulator for the industry, a function it has successfully carried out since 2013 with the aid of an official gazette.

He argued that the interest of the importers and exporters would not be protected if there is no regulator to fix charges, rates and levies, adding that what happened in the industry within the first two years of the port reform programme, where some service providers had to resort to the imposition of some funny and arbitrary charges was an eye opener about what would happen if the Shippers Council is not adequately strengthened in form of legal backing to carry out its Port Economic Regulatory functions.

“The Maritime Advocacy Foundation wants a situation whereby the Nigerian Shippers Council is fully strengthened and given powers as the Port Economic Regulator in the best interest of the shipping sector in particular and the national economy as a whole.

“The Foundation therefore welcomes the planned amendment of the Act as it will usher in best port economic regulation under the statutory obligation of the NSC to give every stakeholder sound and equal footing to operate.

“For us as a group, what is important is for the Shippers Council to be strengthened with powers to bark and bite like a watch dog that it is and not to be manipulated by some few powerful shipping service providers, who would want to take undue advantage of the lacuna in the legislation over and against shipping service users and by extension, the Nigerian people”, Dr. Nweke said.

While reacting to fears raised by Nigerian shippers that some cartels operating in the country would not like the proposed amendment to see the light of the day so that they would continue to milk people dry through the imposition of arbitrary levies and charges, the MAF Publicity Coordinator said: “Shippers (importers and exporter) have remained the channels for job creation across globe. The nomenclature known as import and export data are also purely the making of these shippers.

“The established slogan of the World Trade Organisationis is to the effect that trade has become the instrument of promoting global peace not just economic activities. In this regards, the respect and interests of the shippers is paramount. It is on record that, without the shippers no freight markets and without freight markets no transport activities across modes.

“We also wish to state in specific terms that, apart from the provisions of the shippers’ rights in the Marine Insurance Act of 1909, three principal international surface transport conventions have evolved over the decades to streamline interests between the ship owner and cargo owner.”