By Oko Ebuka

CHAIRMAN, EducationandMaritime committee, of the Council for the Regulation of Freight Forwarding in Nigeria, CRFFN, Farinto Kayode, has expressed concern over the influx of foreigners, especially the Lebanese and Indians in the nation’s port activities, thereby crowding out Nigerians in the various opportunities in the sector.  

In an exclusive chat with Vanguard Maritime Report, Farinto said that he has written to Mr President suggesting to him about the enactment of an indigenisation act that will enable only the indigenes of the country to operate in the ports’ businesses which can effectively guarantee jobs to Nigerians.

According to him, “I just finished writing a proposal to Mr President on how we should do what is called indigenization? Everybody now is taking over our job. Over 99 per cent of cargo businesses in Nigeria is taken over by Lebanese, by Indians, and nobody is thinking of that.

“If the federal government will come up with a decree more like indigenization act, it will create not less than 250,000 jobs. I expect the leaders in the industry to be thinking ahead of how we can assist the burdened nation.”

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He further said that this act will go a long way in fishing out unpatriotic people who help in destroying the image of the country by engaging in all manner of illicit business activities in order to make their money.

”As I am now if I have consignment in Cotonou, I give it to an indigene of Cotonou because I can’t go to their port and say that I want to clear goods. But every Tom, Dick and Harry will come to our ports and clear goods. That is why you see the increase in the number of psychotropic drugs in our system, a large number of ammunition that is being cleared into our society because they are non-patriotic people. They are not Nigerians; they are just there to make their money”, he concluded.